[3.5/PF] Best things to do without morality dragging you down?

[randomhero00]

I've never in all my years played an evil character (or even a neutral thief type!) So what's fun and profitable to do when you don't have those annoying morals to weigh you down?

[Ravens_cry]

Just because you're evil, doesn't mean you are an idiot. LE would be my favourite evil to play because it is less self-destructive. If something needs doing, and it doesn't go against their ethical code (and sometimes even then), then it gets done. I did what I had to do and all that. NE can be difficult because if the Big Bad or associates give them a better offer, and they don't fear the retribution of the other players, they will take it. CE, yeeks. Often only workable when you are the Chained Beast. The others basically aim you at the enemy and let you go all ape-****. Otherwise, it takes extremely mature role-playing on how you function within the party and an explanation why.

[SilverLeaf167]

In a MythWeavers game, I'm playing a LE Dread Necromancer // Warlock. He just got Suggested by another player to kill a random beggar ("nobody will notice anyhow"), which he wouldn't have done otherwise. It just draws too much attention and gets people to chase you.

[randomhero00]

Just because you're evil, doesn't mean you are an idiot. LE would be my favourite evil to play because it is less self-destructive. If something needs doing, and it doesn't go against their ethical code (and sometimes even then), then it gets done. I did what I had to do and all that. NE can be difficult because if the Big Bad or associates give them a better offer, and they don't fear the retribution of the other players, they will take it. CE, yeeks. Often only workable when you are the Chained Beast. The others basically aim you at the enemy and let you go all ape-****. Otherwise, it takes extremely mature role-playing on how you function within the party and an explanation why.

err ok, yes I generally agree but that has little to do with the topic at hand. I'm asking what's fun not how to screw my party members...

[subject42]

If you're going to play an evil character, use people.

Don't treat your fellow man as an intelligent, sensitive being with a unique set of drives, goals, and aspirations. Treat every single person that you encounter as a potential tool that you can use to further your own agenda. Lie to them, steal from them, blackmail them. Just make sure that your actions further your own goals and won't sabotage you later on.

Just remember to ignore that twinge of empathy that you feel as a player in response to your character's actions.

[WarKitty]

Just because you're evil, doesn't mean you are an idiot. LE would be my favourite evil to play because it is less self-destructive. If something needs doing, and it doesn't go against their ethical code (and sometimes even then), then it gets done. I did what I had to do and all that. NE can be difficult because if the Big Bad or associates give them a better offer, and they don't fear the retribution of the other players, they will take it. CE, yeeks. Often only workable when you are the Chained Beast. The others basically aim you at the enemy and let you go all ape-****. Otherwise, it takes extremely mature role-playing on how you function within the party and an explanation why.

Evil characters don't have to have no attachments whatsoever. My last evil character regarded the rest of his party as minions in training. He was really quite fond of them, even if he would never have admitted it. Leads to some fun moments of "Whaddya mean you don't like that I just gutted the dude that was bothering you? Isn't that what you do with people that bother you?"

Seriously, that is quite fun. Some dude in the bar hitting on the cute elf chick in your party? Fillet him and then act surprised and hurt when she objects.

[randomhero00]

Evil characters don't have to have no attachments whatsoever. My last evil character regarded the rest of his party as minions in training. He was really quite fond of them, even if he would never have admitted it. Leads to some fun moments of "Whaddya mean you don't like that I just gutted the dude that was bothering you? Isn't that what you do with people that bother you?"

haha, that's an amusing and good point.

PS I also don't see CE as stupid evil. Just cause they're CE doesn't make them less intelligent or wise.

[Ravens_cry]

err ok, yes I generally agree but that has little to do with the topic at hand. I'm asking what's fun not how to screw my party members...

My fun is everyones fun, I feel bad if I am griefing other characters.

[HunterOfJello]

Interestingly enough, evil characters naturally involve more roleplaying than good ones. When you're out to exploit or subjugate everyone around you, then you take more notice of npcs and their possible value.

[Valameer]

I always seem to gravitate towards mind-control when I'm evil. Not on the party, just on everyone else.

Either that or playing a dungeon-delving psychopath who goes into creatures lairs, slaughters them all and takes their stuff... without needing to justify any of it with flimsy morality.

[WarKitty]

My fun is everyones fun, I feel bad if I am griefing other characters.

Meh, if that's all the evil characters you've seen you game with some pretty poor roleplayers.

[Felhammer]

Burning down an Orc Orphanage, watching the screaming half-dead flaming orc younglings flail around screaming to their heathen god to save them, all the while chuckling to yourself as you enjoy a trail ration...

Not that that happened in a Drow Campaign... I may or may not have played in...

EDIT: If it makes anyone feel better my Drow Duskblade may or may not have been quartered by an Orc Chieftain for 'Crimes Against Orc-kind'...

[Snake-Aes]

I've never in all my years played an evil character (or even a neutral thief type!) So what's fun and profitable to do when you don't have those annoying morals to weigh you down?

How are you going to face the alignment? Is it part of what he strives for? part of what he believes in? Part of his nature?

Evil characters of the "for the evulz" type are the most detached types.

Do you want not to screw with your party members? THen just don't do something that screws them over. Evil != MWAHAHAHA DIE LITTLE PUPPETS
Your evil chracter can, for example, like his party members.

My current group is made of 4 evil guys, all NE.
1 and 2 are lifelong friends. 3 was/is Infatuated with a common "sport" with 1 (they spar in the mornings, the 1's goals trigger opportunities for the 3's goals). 4 used the group as protection, and later befriended the 2 and then the whole group over the course of a few months to the point that if they are on opposing ends of a battlefield, 2, 3 and 4 would just turn around and side with each other either until the conflict was over or until they could flee.

The evil side? 1 is a champion of the god of war, and lives to promote conflict. 2 is a mad scientist type that is too busy either having a good time with 1 (and 3 / 4) or messing with his gadgets to care about anyone other than 1 (and 3 / 4); being also the brains of the group.3 is a hedonist glory hound (think warblade's fluff up to 11) with multiple identities that she assume to be a villain, a hero or whatever that she sees fit whose deeds would be remembered forever. 4 is a mercenary thief and overall backstabbing sneaky guy who puts his own needs above any other.

[Shenanigans]

I agree with the general sentiment that being evil doesn't necessitate screwing over the party, even if you're chaotic evil.

As an evil character/party, we've had a lot of fun. Once, we found an altar that, if you didn't speak a proper command word, would turn you into blue ice (the special material) when you touched it. Needless to say, we made a killing (literally!) on blue ice statues and selling raw blue ice (once we lured some gelatinous cubes to it.)

Overall, my favorite thing to do as an evil character is to not overdo it. When the local (NPC) paladin can detect you as evil, but can't demonstrate any evil acts you've done, it's pretty fun. :)

[Gavinfoxx]

Item Crafting. Harvest Liquid Pain. Do that "Lawful Evil Medicant" scheme.

http://brilliantgameologists.com/boa...p?topic=7274.0

[Anterean]

Evil characters don't have to have no attachments whatsoever. My last evil character regarded the rest of his party as minions in training. He was really quite fond of them, even if he would never have admitted it. Leads to some fun moments of "Whaddya mean you don't like that I just gutted the dude that was bothering you? Isn't that what you do with people that bother you?"

Seriously, that is quite fun. Some dude in the bar hitting on the cute elf chick in your party? Fillet him and then act surprised and hurt when she objects.

Even though WFRP doesn´t have alignments (the second edition doesn´t atleast) I don´t think any in my group disagreed that my bright wizard who acted like that was evil.

[randomhero00]

Hmm. That gives me an idea. A character who starts mischief by murdering someone, setting someone else up as the killer, and then winning the day and become the "hero." He could do it in every town he comes across.

What would make the best assassin though? As in killing commoners without being noticed in a group of low level adventurers. Especially at lower levels where this would be more useful. I'm thinking either psion or rogue.

[subject42]

What would make the best assassin though? As in killing commoners without being noticed in a group of low level adventurers. Especially at lower levels where this would be more useful. I'm thinking either psion or rogue.

Which class is it that has the spell that makes a nightmare kill you in your sleep?

[Tome]

I don't often play evil characters, but there have been a few over the years.

The first was in an Exalted game. It was a Loyalist Abyssals game and I was playing a Midnight Caste, of the "burn the world, piss on the ashes and howl the last laugh into the wind" variety. Very much a complete monster who went for violence as her first solution. In fact, she was possibly the worst of the group. Different from my usual sort of character and a good way to unwind. She did have some decent, worked out reasons for being so bad, and priorities beyond just "murder everything", which I think was important in making her so fun. The fact that everyone else was also trying to murder everything, except for the Sidereal spy, meant that she didn't cause any more trouble for the rest of the party than they caused for themselves. Oh, and she hammed it up at every available opportunity. Can't forget to ham it up if you're going to play this sort of character.

The second was in a D&D game. I was playing a 'trickster priest' sort of character (Gestalt Factotum//Archivist). He was CE, but not stupid. His actions were all carefully plotted to cause the greatest amount of chaos possible and to disrupt the existing social order, but he never bit off more than he could chew. Very different from my previous evil character, he tended towards trickery and deceit and took more than the odd page out of Xanatos' and Xellos' playbooks. LE characters aren't the only ones who can plot and scheme after all.

So yeah, if you're playing an evil character, don't forget to have a personality outside of the whole evil thing. Give them a goal to employ their evil means towards. Maybe they want to tear down a particular organisation, maybe they want revenge. Just make sure they have something that they're working towards, because evil character tend to be a lot more proactive than good ones. Good guys can just stand around letting the villain make the first move and foiling them, but don't necessarily always do so. Evil characters need to be the ones making the plans or trying to conquer the world, and the opposition reacts to them. It can make or break the character in my opinion.

I'll also second sentiments of not screwing over your party. Regardless of whether it fits your character or not, intra-party conflict is normally no fun for anyone (unless in very small amounts).

Hope that made sense, I'm feeling a bit sleep deprived at the moment.

[nihilism]

Ah the joys of evil.....

without a doubt the most interesting aspect is the moral conflict it causes within the party. Or even better when you are actively conspiring against the party.

Capturing villagers for liquid pain production, ha ha ha ha!

[Sewercop]

Get minions, not crazy ugly zombies. You are smart,,, you will of course make the other players your minions. Snare them in the net power and when you have them, Train them.
Make them do the evil stuff.

Best part of playing evil? Convince everybody that you are good. start uprisings against leaders through others. Try to get the spot as a he guy hammering out the truce. Both sides will owe you.

I have a harder time trying to play lawful good than lawful\neutral evil in d&d.

[Tetrasodium]

Liquid pain is always good.

If you have a bloodthirsty type in your party, you can temper that bloodthirst somewhat by channeling it towards your own goals. Want to cleanse the world of X species?... what a coincidence, X species is protecting the big chest of gold I want to acquire.

You can interact with beings you wouldn't normally be able to interact with or have conversations where both sides aren't above slaughtering the other and just taking what they want if the bargain isn't as favorable as they want. Good types will hurt you and maybe kill you if there is a fight... evil types will lock you in a force cage above a mat with a permanent circle of pain... and keep fixing your stat damage until the permanency is paid off in magic item XP and they have enough for their fancy new doodad; the incentive not to risk a fight is higher sometimes with evil types.

Also what Sewercop said :)