Minibosses In RPG

[Bartmanhomer]

Minibosses better known as minor bosses or minor villains play a small part during any RPG. I feel like that they're underrated and they deserved a bigger part in the game. What do you think of Minibosses. Also what your experience facing a Minibosses in your RPG?

[Pleh]

I dunno. I think TTRPGs tend to be more fluid and organic than video games, which can lead to Minor Villains to survive the heroes, skulk away to grow in power, whille the main bad gets totally nuked.

Then that "minor" villain starts working behind the scenes, amassing power in the vacuum of his master's absence to eventually become the true enemy of the heroes in the game

I mean, that's what Sauron did.

[CharonsHelper]

I dunno. I think TTRPGs tend to be more fluid and organic than video games, which can lead to Minor Villains to survive the heroes, skulk away to grow in power, whille the main bad gets totally nuked.

Yeah, +1 to this.

I've never actually planned to have a lesser boss become a recurring villain, but I do usually have it set so that they'll run if it looks like they're definitely going to lose. Then, if they get away I've got a cool recurring villain, and nothing makes players happier than finally taking down that recurring punk who has already gotten away 2-3 times.

If I'd used GM tricks to let him get away to force the recurring thing they would have just been annoyed, but they could tell that I hadn't. (I actually had a different major villain who I'd PLANNED to be recurring, as she was fast, acrobatic, and had an escape route planned by jumping across rooftops. She got snagged by the tanky player not bothering with the rooftops and readying an action with bolas as she jumped between two buildings. Caught me totally off guard and she would have otherwise made clean her escape - but they got her.)

[LibraryOgre]

IME, they tend to be "lieutenants" of a major leader. In T1, for example, you have the bandit leader in the ruins as a lieutenant of Lareth the Beautiful. Of course, T1 doesn't neatly map to it, because you have some other places of hard monsters... the gnolls, the bugbears, the ogre, the giant crayfish.

[Knaight]

I wouldn't use the term "miniboss", but recurring enemies that are less powerful than major villains come up pretty often. They also frequently have power with a more direct application - the main villain might well be a civillian or totally unexceptional combatant with a major organization behind them, where minor villains are more likely to be personally powerful or to have smaller, more individually effective groups.

They may or may not be underlings within the organizations of more major villains. Mine usually aren't, but I use both types frequently. They're also useful in a role for opposition that only has beef with particular PCs, both in terms of enemies left over from character concept and in terms of usually completely unnecessary enemies PCs made through completely unnecessary belligerence.

[YohaiHorosha]

I don't plan for them. The players tend to create them for me.

[Jarawara]

I don't plan for them. The players tend to create them for me.

Somewhat the same here. I provide lots and lots of potential mini bosses. Some play out as expected, some get bypassed into obscurity. But some stand out, the players take notice, and they become a recurring villain.

Basically, my players tell me who the BBEG is, based on who of the minibosses they most liked to hate.