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Tryranus_Magus
2007-11-13, 10:09 AM
Darth Vader

Sauron

Names that invoke power, fear, etc.

What are some of the best villain names (BBEG) that you've encountered or come up with?

Telonius
2007-11-13, 11:21 AM
Bad guys that I've come up with (Tolkien 4th age setting):
Ranamond
Idirigan

MCerberus
2007-11-13, 11:36 AM
I've always been partial to Vecna as a good sounding name for a really evil guy.

cupkeyk
2007-11-13, 11:44 AM
Sascha Vykos/Mischa Vykos - Rolls out of the tongue sensually.

Absimiliard - Not really a villain but his name just defines an intelligent power with how the vowels begin with short sounds ending with an extended one.

Crow
2007-11-13, 12:39 PM
Goran

It's a common name, but when playing with Americans, few have heard it, and it has a certain feel to it.

Lord Tataraus
2007-11-13, 12:47 PM
Garthergnoble (Gar-ther-nob-le) - I'm not good at showing pronunciation, but basically it starts a bit menacing and ends on a funny note. He's a goblin so he can be funny at times, but when it comes to business, Garthergnoble doesn't like to be messed with. Its not evil sounding completely at first so the players don't expect much out of him, but then they find out what he's done and the Garther part sticks out more and seems more menacing.

Leadfeathermcc
2007-11-13, 12:53 PM
Mercy.


He got the nickname the same way the 7 foot 350 pound guy got the nickname Tiny.

PlatinumJester
2007-11-13, 01:21 PM
Alfred - invokes terror into your heart.

Toliudar
2007-11-13, 01:23 PM
Keyzer Soze. Any time the villain's name gets repeated that much in a work, it's going to take on some power.

Volug
2007-11-13, 01:25 PM
Xeragnarok - It invokes fear into my heart anyways...

TheAlmightyOne
2007-11-13, 01:26 PM
ARRRGGHH!

I stabbed him while he was still in the middle of his introductory speech. Critical, max damage. He didn't get back up :smallbiggrin:

yoshi927
2007-11-13, 01:27 PM
I like "Lucian". (Fortuna Saga) It seems kinda sinister, while at the same time being something that a parent would feasibly name their child.

CabbageTheif
2007-11-13, 01:27 PM
Kretch- Kobold sorcerer

Lilth- the elf illusionist who was pretending to be a Kobold Sorcerer named Kretch, but under the guis of lilth pretended to be the parties ally

these were the same people, with different alliases, but the party DESPISED the name kretch; the room could be completley filled, partymembers talking at all the same time, and all i would need to do is wisper "the npc asks the paladine if he had heard of Kretch" and the room would be silent.

i prefer harsh, hard consanents in my villians names. lots of ch, z, t, r, and very few u or o for vowels.

Setra
2007-11-13, 01:36 PM
Not a D&D name, but in a story a wrote there is a character I named 'Tannakar', sounded good to me.

In the end though, I don't think it's just the name. It's how people react to it, how it is said, and the character himself.

Crow
2007-11-13, 01:46 PM
I'm waiting for the players in my group to stumble upon the name "Bathory". Right now it's the name of the lord (Lord Bathory, they know him as) our group's knight is pledged to.

KIDS
2007-11-13, 02:03 PM
Goran

It's a common name, but when playing with Americans, few have heard it, and it has a certain feel to it.

wtf man, I'd be quite shocked if someone I played with had a villain named like that - it's my (Croatian) name... though I can understand the russian allure, no doubt of that. :smallsmile:
How about Boris?

herrhauptmann
2007-11-13, 02:06 PM
Baron Cardaz Faradorn Von Brizee

Cenoles Trange (the 's' at the end of cenoles is silent)

Sephiroth (Final Fantasy 7)

Rolaran
2007-11-13, 02:06 PM
Well, my first DM had a villain named Karl Masterson. Not the most menacing name, but the stuff he did cemented it in the back of our minds. One character in the game actually developed a compulsion, and begin shaking his fist at the sky and screaming "MASTERSON!" whenever something went wrong. Of course, later on when he ascended into godhood, there was a chance of him actually answering...

Fuum Bango
2007-11-13, 02:28 PM
I've named a few,
Ben-bah-sin-say, a strange otherworldy chaos beast that enjoys sneaking into communities as a judge and creating unjust law systems. ( A slaad for those in the know.)

Frau Kindeaser, the night hag hermit, mother of sirens and child eater.

Kaseb, a half-orc rogue and a fan of history. He enjoyed twisting legends in his peoples favour and knowing things about the heroes family tree.

Heth, a awaken dormant volcano. :smallwink:

SoD
2007-11-13, 02:55 PM
Willikins-butler.

I'm suffering from 'simplifying', where the players tend to change my NPCs names for a bit. When using a pre-published (albeit modified) adventure to get us started, an elven wizard called Thamior was, if anything, overcomplicated in his nickname: The Mysticality Guy. Everyone (PC and NPC) call one goblin cook Cookie, and at the moment, a mephit monk is called 'Batman'. They dare give nickname to the guy who single handedly KO'd the entire party before burying the rogues knife in the ground next to the clerics head.

AslanCross
2007-11-13, 04:45 PM
I'm waiting for the players in my group to stumble upon the name "Bathory". Right now it's the name of the lord (Lord Bathory, they know him as) our group's knight is pledged to.

...will he do the same to them as his namesake? D: That name certainly has creepy origins.

Best villain names I've heard:

Hannibal Lecter -- The historical reference and the Latin-sounding surname (Lector, a reader) make him sound brilliant.

Morgoth -- There's something about "Mor" that makes it sound evil or at the very least, dark and shadowy. Then "Goth."

Best I've come up with:

Al'Lashvahazred: For a blue dragon. It has a vague Middle-Eastern flavor as well as a Cthulhu reference. It's long and would be difficult to pronounce for most common people in a fantasy setting. Shortens perfectly to a great blue dragon name: "Lash."

Zomorrodnegar Al'Zafir: Lash's half-dragon son. Ironically, Zomorrodnegar means "Emerald-Studded," it was part of the name of a mythical sword said to have belonged to King Solomon.

Chandrakali: A female Naztharune rakshasa. "Chandra" means Moon in an Indian language (not sure which), while "Kali" can mean "Black." I found it weird that many Rakshasa NPCs had Arabian-sounding names while the mythological Rakshasa is actually Indian.

daggaz
2007-11-13, 04:50 PM
Not to mention, Hannibal rhymes with cannibal. Im sure that wasnt by accident.

"Mor" has a dark sound to it in Latin based languages because, in Latin, "Mors" or "Mortis" means death.

nobodylovesyou4
2007-11-13, 04:56 PM
well, i almost used gleemax as the bbeg in a campaign once, but we never played that far. oh well. i had all sorts of stuff lined up for him, hes the leader of the illithid, he was working with demons, and used the neogi to bring him uber psionic-enchancing items so he could destroy the sun. wouldve been awesome...

and who can forget the most evil of all of them, The Dead Cthulhu?

Stormcrow
2007-11-13, 05:00 PM
Mother....

Lord Tataraus
2007-11-13, 05:04 PM
Mother....

*creepy music*AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!! !!!!!!!

Sonofaspectre
2007-11-13, 05:30 PM
Masque was a good one, as is now with Umba?la. The "?" is a symbol for a glottal stop, kinda like a "t" sound in the back of your throat. Ni-Do is also doing wonders as a name that strikes fear in the hearts of my players.

OneWinged4ngel
2007-11-13, 05:46 PM
Mother....

Perhaps the best villain names (when the impact of names alone are measured) are the ones with special meaning or that, in a single utterance, reveal a stunning plot twist.

Ultimately, what had more impact? The dark name "Darth Vader" or the quote "Luke, I am your father"?

Anyways, in general, any good villain name is a MEMORABLE villain name. Titles (be it nicknames or honorifics or something else entirely), backstory (such as explanation of the name's significance), or whatever can help to make a name have more staying power. And even in the case of some abysmal horror from the far planes, try to make it easily pronounceable. For example, Xylessekri (zil-uh-SEK-ree) is easily pronounceable, but still sounds exotic and gutteral enough to suit a mind flayer.

Drider
2007-11-13, 05:54 PM
Doctor Doom? Seriously tho, a name is'nt scary unless it ends up being cliched to be Mr.Evil McEvilpants

WrstDmEvr
2007-11-13, 06:55 PM
Nex is my personal favorite because my friends don't understand latin.

Draz74
2007-11-13, 07:40 PM
Pun-Pun. :smallwink:

Azaul
2007-11-13, 07:43 PM
The Six Fingered Gauntlet was a great villainous party name, and the telekenetic rogue from that party was Gratt

There was an evil immortal called The Glutton.

Vuzzmop
2007-11-13, 10:05 PM
The villain/tyrannical dictator in my campaign setting of Czaric (I'll get round to posting it at some point) goes by the name of Grand Arbiter Czaric VII.

One of my friends made a campaign in which the villain was the oh-so-cliched "Duke of Blood", terrible, huh?

Idea Man
2007-11-13, 10:51 PM
A friend of mine was always partial to Markov.

Szass Tam has always been a favorite of mine. :smallamused:

Lord Tataraus
2007-11-13, 11:00 PM
A friend of mine was always partial to Markov.

Szass Tam has always been a favorite of mine. :smallamused:

Tam??? But they're the good guys....
depending on your perceptive I guess...

Mordan
2007-11-13, 11:51 PM
Charlie

Even typing it gives me the creeps. And he was a choo-choo. He wasn't a nice choo-choo. As a matter of fact, he was a very not nice choo-choo. Though, I have to admit, it's based more on the context of the character then the name itself. Originally when I read the name, I laughed, thinking to myself that there is absolutely no way possible that any author would name a major villian Charlie the Choo-Choo.

Confused? (http://www.thedarktower.net/wiki/Main/CharlieTheChoo-Choo)

andux
2007-11-14, 12:18 AM
Lanfear.

Anyone named Lanfear is guaranteed to rip your heart out and eat it if you piss them off. It's a law of physics.

Frakbox
2007-11-14, 09:20 AM
I think one who is unnamed is brings the most fear.

CabbageTheif
2007-11-14, 12:35 PM
I think one who is unnamed is brings the most fear.

:nale: Another one? Good Goods, man, thats eleven so far who Must Not Be Named. Not to mention the four who Must Not Be Looked At, the two who Must Not Be Spoken To, and the one who Must Not Be Toilet Trained.

:thog: Thog got to use a mop!

CrazedGoblin
2007-11-14, 12:36 PM
Alfred - invokes terror into your heart.

*screams and violently defenstrates self*

silentknight
2007-11-14, 01:02 PM
Fraznilron- A wizard in one of my campaigns that named himself after a another spellcaster in history called Fraznil. Fraznil slaughtered a village of elves to power a spell. Fraznilron liked the ideals exemplified by his namesake.
The party thought it was a stupid name, but eventually they came to fear him because he would do dangerously stupid things to achieve his goals, such as use magic way too powerful for him to control. Heh-heh, they still talk about when almost the entire party failed their saves against hold person and Fraznilron was going to coup-de-grace them.

Kralavarondragos- Ancient red dragon who acquired a pair of artifacts that allowed him to dominate and charm large numbers of people, creating his own army. Even styled himself the Dragon King.

Harkenthall the Elder Wyrm- An advanced blue dragon who was revered as a god by the nomadic tribes that roamed his desert home.

Alyorbase
2007-11-14, 01:13 PM
A lot of names mentioned are really good. I kinda like the names of some of the villians in Warcraft...such as Magtheridon, Ragnaros, Kel-Thuzad, Arthas...Most of those names sounds really cool as villian names.

SadisticFishing
2007-11-14, 01:38 PM
Well, so far the scariest bad guys in my campaign have been:

"That four-armed guy": Necropolitan Human Duskblade 13/Ur-Priest 2/Mystic Theurge 5 - basically slaughtered the entire group except the one guy that could teleport a bajillion times, who ran away. Damn Psions. The BBEG wore black adamantine full plate, with a white cloak over it that had all the Gods' symbols on it outlined, most of which were filled with stained blood. Woopie.

"Xavian": Grey Elf Lich Wizard 5/Binder 1/Anima Mage 10/Archmage 2: Ridiculously intelligent, most of the campaign was just them trying to outthink him (they couldn't, in the end he ascended to Godhood :P).

Yeah, my names are rather cliché.

Telonius
2007-11-14, 02:40 PM
Charlie

Even typing it gives me the creeps. And he was a choo-choo. He wasn't a nice choo-choo. As a matter of fact, he was a very not nice choo-choo. Though, I have to admit, it's based more on the context of the character then the name itself. Originally when I read the name, I laughed, thinking to myself that there is absolutely no way possible that any author would name a major villian Charlie the Choo-Choo.

Confused? (http://www.thedarktower.net/wiki/Main/CharlieTheChoo-Choo)

Blaine is a pain, and that's the truth. Though he is the only bad guy I can think of who was actually defeated by a dead baby.

MCerberus
2007-11-14, 04:14 PM
GLaDOS... *shudder*


she took my companion cube... why...


*curls into a ball*

Mordan
2007-11-14, 04:18 PM
Blaine wasn't defeated by a dead baby, he was defeated by a dead baby joke, which is even worse.

Talyn
2007-11-14, 09:16 PM
Malach the Shadowknight was a fun villain I ran once. He had a necromancer buddy, too, what was his name... Valorkith, I think.

But I like Malach, it's got a nice ominous ring to it.

sixpence
2007-11-14, 10:07 PM
Charlie

YES. I was creeped out by that, too. My childhood, oh, my childhood...

I think you can do a good job with making a villain scary by giving them a nice, innocent-sounding/ normal name and then (when the party least expects it) having them pull off some despicable act or then have the party find out something terrible that they've done. It's so incongruous that it freaks people out, especially when it comes from somewhere they'd least expect it.

Or, if you're going for a more direct route, I'd recommend for a sneaky/ intelligent BBEG: serpentine sounds, or lots of long vowels combined with liquids, like s's, l's, m's, n's or r's and then stops (t's, p's, d's, b's). For example, from Dragonlance: "Raistlin" sounds intelligent, but tricky. Longer names also work well, or having lots of titles-- it sounds intimidating.

Toliudar
2007-11-14, 11:01 PM
Plosives and final sibilants are definitely good starts for villain names.

My PNP group has yet to find a villain name that cannot be lampooned through truncation and rhyming. Feekorviss the lich sounded great...until he was promptly rechristened Feeb. I'm thinking of only giving them common noun nicknames from now on, until the PC's get to know them.

BTW, "Mother" was brilliant...and is now stolen.

Frakbox
2007-11-14, 11:07 PM
usually I use names that are foreign for my villains. such as Arabic names, Greek names, Russian, Icelandic, Swedish... German names are probably the scariest.

Vladamir [Russian]. is one of my favorites.
Though usually when I use Arabic names i usually use Cat people for that. I never got Morrowind out of my system. :)

Catch
2007-11-14, 11:33 PM
Lanfear.

Anyone named Lanfear is guaranteed to rip your heart out and eat it if you piss them off. It's a law of physics.

WoT Lanfear? Definitely. Incredible power meets incredible jealousy. Never a good combination.

The rest of the Forsaken have excellent villain names too:

Aginor, Asmodean, Balthamel, Be'lal, Demandred, Rahvin, Ishamael, Sammael, Graendal, Mesaana, Moghedien, and Semirhage.

dungeon_munky
2007-11-15, 01:26 AM
What's in a name? That which we call an orc, by any other name, would smell as foul?
It isn't the name that incites fear in the hearts of the players, but the actions behind them. The name Masterson means nothing to me, one who has not felt his evil touch, but evidentally to some people somewhere, the name makes them wet themselves. Contrariwise, even if a villain has a hyper kick/bad-ass name that completely rocks, if the villain who has that name has minions that are ridiculous constructs of prop comedians and rubber chickens, or sprite bottles, the players will just laugh.

Make the BBEGs evil enough and the players will fear their names.

Pauwel
2007-11-15, 01:38 AM
Sunlight Gardener.

WhiteHarness
2007-11-15, 09:11 AM
Sephiroth (Final Fantasy 7)

Since I had read the Kabbalah long before that horrid game hit the US, I could never see that word as a villain's name; it just struck me as uninspired.

nerulean
2007-11-15, 09:34 AM
Zyar. Not a BBEG, but a fellow PC who has the DM trying to research the spell Dispel Zyar.

Krimm_Blackleaf
2007-11-15, 10:00 AM
Bloodsword(pretty much the lord of all rageforged, see my sig for the setting)
Vlaadios D'Skuur(Vampire lord and emperor of Cernin, see my sig for the setting)
Roduok, the Flame of Levakross(lich lord with a thing for fire spells and powerful enchantments)
Thornuss Daark(no one in particular, just a name I gave to a picture for a class I made a while back and I've used the last name on a few characters in the past because I like it)
Uurlslothokk(hasn't been played, but he's a cerebrilith psion I plan to put into an adventure I'm writing for no campaign in particular)

mostlyharmful
2007-11-15, 10:44 AM
Ran a possesser demon BBEG for a campaign once, it got named by the first person it met after arriving on the prime all shiney and new, the whole campaign was centred around finding out it's name and using it to beat the rabid little psycho back to the abyss. It was named by a six year old girl after possessing a dead rabbit.... the number of times they ran screaming from Mr. Fluffles....:smallbiggrin:

and charlie was the creepiest damn choo-choo... cold shivers,...

Karma Guard
2007-11-15, 11:33 AM
There was The Nameless One, but most of his horror and/or fear came from the all the things his past incarnation (The Practical One) did.

He really was the best villain ever.

Also, Morte (Mortimer, but ssh, don't tell anyone) Rictusgrin and Nordom Whistleclick. Those are pretty good names.

...I still need to get around to making a 3.5ed Morte.

Vuzzmop
2007-11-15, 02:22 PM
My PCs just finished killing one of my minor villlains, the insane and vermin-esque wizard "Finneus Lockwood". I used the name finneus because it sounds aristocratic, but less than sinister, perfect for a character such as Mr Lockwood, who lives in the highest tower of an old insane asylum, listening to the voices in his head. But is he really insane? Or is he controlled by a greater evil than himself?

Sorry:smallbiggrin: , I just have to flaunt that character, he's one of my favourite characters in my campaign setting so far.

Armoury99
2007-11-15, 02:44 PM
Karam Guul - an evil necromancer in the Conan tradition.

Thuggra Ghul - (no relation to the above) Legendary orcish warlord with grey beard and steely eyes. Characters feared and respected him, players had more affection for this canny leader of orcs than just about any other NPC...

Eyes Desire - a brilliant and seductive villainess from Planescape

Mister Vandal & Mister Goth - "professional henchmen" and a homage to unkillable killers Croup and Vandemeer from Neverwhere

Sujat the Ashen - a 'fallen' efreet turned underworld boss

And on a less serious note... a pompus half-orc barbarian called "Uber Mannly" (he was great fun) :smallsmile:

BizzaroStormy
2007-11-24, 12:50 AM
Richard, Chief Warlock of the Brothers of Darkness, Lord of the Thirteen Hells, Master of Bones, Emporer of the Black, Lord of the Undead, and Mayor of a little village up the coast.

Irreverent Fool
2007-11-24, 01:26 AM
Garland - the name of the first villain in the first final fantasy game. I was dreadfully afraid of encountering him and the first time I played, he wiped out characters one at a time, leaving my poor red mage to finish him off with a final FIRE spell. He had the best-designed sprite in the whole game and had the most wonderful phrase he said right before the battle started.

And of course, he shows up at the end of the game as KAOS, the final boss and the one responsible for the decay of the world.

The Extinguisher
2007-11-24, 01:45 AM
The best villian name I have ever come up with was called The End.
Nothing else. Just 'The End'. The kind of name that strikes fear and uncertianty into the heroes hearts.

Also another villian of mine, a character named Kailia. Cause I like villians that are humans, and not soulesses embodiments of evil. Human names make for intimidating villians.

Rolaran
2007-11-24, 02:05 AM
Richard, Chief Warlock of the Brothers of Darkness, Lord of the Thirteen Hells, Master of Bones, Emporer of the Black, Lord of the Undead, and Mayor of a little village up the coast.

:smallamused: Your name is Richard?

:smallsigh: You were supposed to pay attention to everything after that.

Personally, I like to keep the name secret for the first few encounters and let the players refer to the villain by their appearance and/or actions. When they describe him as "the cleric-killer with the weird scar on his right palm", it builds the menace.

That, and the fact that even when my typical party knows the name, we end up having this conversation with alarming regularity.

NPC: There can be no doubt that Borigoff is responsible for this latest murder.
Player 1: Who?
Player 2: You know, the cleric-killer with the scar on his hand.
Player 1: Oh, right.

Nerd-o-rama
2007-11-24, 02:12 AM
I usually just pick a name that sounds good. For example, current characters:

Daveon Salieri. First name is "a normal name, but fantasy-ized!" which fits the character concept rather well. Last name is just because Amadeus happened to be on, and I'm not particularly proud of it. Which fits well with his in-character family issues, so I stick with it.

Rin. Picked a monosyllabic Japanese name at random, since she's in an "animesque" game, and a Changeling, who tend toward one-syllable names.

Liliana. Name picked largely at random, but partly based on a supervisor at an old job, whose last name, against all standards of propriety for a librarian, was Spanish for "steel".

I'll dig up a list of NPCs I made for a defunct game later, although Karl the Fighter from a more current game comes to mind now. So named because he was the DMPC, and I wanted him as generic as possible so as not to steal the spotlight.

Yami
2007-11-24, 02:18 AM
Sadly, few of my villans end up with proper names, and those that do have thier names subverted or lost due to player nicknames.

There are those, of course, that stick around for a bit. Few though are villans proper.

The Newyork Minute - He was a superhero in a campiagn wherein the party played villans, and ended up being that largest thorn in thier side by far. Very speed based, and he never stuck around past round 4. The campaign ended with his defeat, so I think it works.

Grizig the Free - A goblin raid leader who at first terrified the party and later became well known and loved once they finally captured him. A favorite PC of mine who I pulled out as a villan for a rather unplanned game. I was somewhat taken aback when the party decided to spare him and drag them back for a proper trial. Later on, due to life threatening circumstances, he ended up fighting along side them, which is probably what they remeber him for.

The Undying One - A black dragon aiming for godhood whose first name has been lost to me. The party ended up choosing to work for him rather than fighting him, beleiving that the other force of Evil, a Devil infestation, was the bigger threat. Besides, he offered undeath and the barbarian couldn't pass up immunity to fatigue.

The Healer - Another NPC whose name has been forgotten, immediately dubbed The Healer when they party came to him for help. (It's what happens when no one builds a cleric.) Suffice it to say, his name didn't change when they found out he was the one raising the dead and sewing together the party's defeated foes to create unspeakable abominations. They just prefaced it with an explative and changed the tone. I still fondly remeber the three seperate times they left injured party members in his care, and were always shocked when the BBEG came for them.

For me it's the titles that stick. The names just never seem to.

Greyen
2007-11-24, 02:31 AM
Brother Char - A very intelligent priest of a dead god of death (Myrkul) who started out as a PC and moved to NPC villain status after the player moved (with permission of course). He tormented the players for a long time.

In many of my "Supers" games I use a government agent named Agent Hadley. My players know this NPC by now but he has extremely powerful AOE power damping abilities. The characters know he is there 100 yards before he shows his face because no ones powers work any more. Not really a BBEG but a repeat NPC that strikes fear into my players.

rickvoid
2007-11-24, 08:43 AM
Mathias Cronqvist: BBEG from CastleVania: Lament of Innocence. I thought he had a badass evil sounding name. Never understood why he scrapped it for Dracula. Of course, this is from the game that gave us a Vampire named Walter :smalleek: .

Mikeavelli
2007-11-24, 10:44 AM
For the Ultima fans out there, the Slasher of Veils is the best-named demon I've ever heard of.

It's obscure enough that I can steal it for my own games without anyone ever realizing it.

Similarly, while I've never gotten the chance to use it, the Melnorme Starship "Inevitably Successful in all circumstances" has the greatest name of any Science Fiction vessel ever.

the ones I've created:

we had a guy in our college gaming club (an official student organization that was funded by the college and everything) - who did some downright dirty ****. I'm talking embezzling club funds, working the college system to attend classes without paying for them, dating jailbait, etc. Not sure exactly what happened to him in the end, but he doesn't come around anymore.

In his honor, all of the BBEGs for present-day setting campaigns are named 'Jason.' No relation to the hockey mask guy.

Maerik - the evil wizard, never got much face-time, but I loved the name.

Shlug Elfslayer - The Ugly Troll, known for being the D&D equivalent of the incredible hulk, complete with "SHLUG BASH" and never dying.

Saar'Tcheras - BBEG Arcanaloth.

Mr.Bookworm
2007-11-24, 11:05 AM
I'm personally a big fan of Him. You might find out his name later, but all you know right now is that he's an evil SOB. The only problem with this approach is that my players tended to invent nicknames that stuck, like Lord Killyou.

I also ran a campaign where the main villian was named Rick. He single-handedly killed several villages, and put the bodies of babies up on spikes for all to see. That group, to this day, still winces when I say the name Rick.

When I use straight names, I generally dig up angel and demon names. One of my favorites was Abaddon, the King of Locusts, who always had Locust Swarms defending him.

rickvoid
2007-11-24, 11:36 AM
I also ran a campaign where the main villian was named Rick. He single-handedly killed several villages, and put the bodies of babies up on spikes for all to see. That group, to this day, still winces when I say the name Rick.

:smallbiggrin:

Always nice to meet a fan.

JK. :smallbiggrin:

Archpaladin Zousha
2007-11-24, 04:28 PM
SHODAN.

Despite the fact that it's just an anacronym, she gave me such a bad case of the creeps that I got skittish around my computer.

Some time though, I'd like to create a villain and give him a simply silly name, like Bob or something, and then make him a total bad-ass.

J.Gellert
2007-11-24, 05:46 PM
A while ago I crafted a villain called Kasimir.

Also, almost any name from a Dragon in the Baldur's Gate series. Firkraag, Abazigal... Though the one that tops them all is Icasaracht, from Heart of Winter. But these are names already taken.

Foolosophy
2007-11-24, 07:16 PM
German names are probably the scariest.


Oo

According to wikipedia's article on german names:


These are the most frequently names, given to babies in 2006.

Girls:

1. Marie
2. Sophie/Sofie
3. Maria
4. Anna, Anne
5. Leonie
6. Lena
7. Emily
8. Johanna
9. Laura
10. Lea/Leah

Boys:

1. Leon
2. Maximilian
3. Alexander
4. Lukas/Lucas
5. Paul
6. Luca
7. Tim
8. Felix
9. David
10. Elias

Most popular names for girls in 1900:

1. Frieda
2. Anna
3. Martha
4. Erna
5. Gertrud
6. Emma
7. Elisabeth
8. Margarete / Margarethe
9. Marie
10. Else

Most popular names for boys in 1900:

1. Walter
2. Karl
3. Heinrich
4. Wilhelm
5. Hans
6. Ernst
7. Otto
8. Paul
9. Friedrich
10. Hermann


Ok, you might score with Heinrich or Hermann I suppose...

Xefas
2007-11-25, 01:17 AM
I've almost given up on naming my villains anything special. If they aren't something like Steve or Tim, the party never remembers and just starts referring to them as "That assface we have to kill" or "That guy who was being a jackass earlier".

I'm looking into taking a lead from the Megaman games and calling them stuff like "Blastman", "Stabman", and "Organremovalman". Could be funny actually, especially if you start naming other people too. The henchman they just hired is named "Betrayalman", there's a wandering bard singing in the town square named "Apocolypseman", the PC's witness a birth in which the parents name the newborn "Reocurringvillainman".

Might get old after a while, but it'd still be better than now :smallannoyed:

Serpentine
2007-11-25, 01:25 AM
Tyrax Destruktor was a good one from Goff.
Unfortunately, I spoiled his introduction a bit...
I giggled.

The scientific name for the freshwater yabbie is Chyrax dextruktor.

Talic
2007-11-25, 01:32 AM
I named myself after my most memorable. A bright-eyed halfling mage named talic brightmoor, betrayed by a hired group of rogues and left for dead. In his quest to topple the syndicate of rogues, he stooped to greater and greater measures, eventually becoming a lich, as a path to power. He slew the rogues thirty years to the day after his betrayal, and continued on his immortal path, seeking ways to eradicate every trace of the life those rogues led, seeking to slay everyone whose life they touched, destroy everything their hands had built.

The culmination, centuries later, was in the destruction of a port city that had been founded by one of the band in his later years, after retiring from ill-gotten pursuits, and before being caught and killed by the lich. The catch, was that the port city was Quite mad, and quite brilliant, he is nonetheless as apt to show mercy to people he confronts as brutality, provided they are not linked to his obsession.