ParanetOnline
The Dresden Files => DFRPG => Topic started by: mikeryan on June 17, 2007, 10:07:13 PM
-
It's a bit early yet, but I've been brainstorming ideas for what I'd throw at a group of PCs, assuming I can get a game going once the rpg is out. Fortunately, some of the ideas I've had seem to gel fairly well with what Iago has posted regarding the Laws of Magic.
Anyway, I'm going to post the rough notes I have for some bad guys. If you have any villains in mind for your own game, I'd like to hear about them.
As a general rule, I'm going to try to distance my characters from both the White Council and the metaplot of the novels. The reason for this is that most of my potential players haven't read any of the books (but I'm working on that). I'm going to focus on threats that the WC doesn't have the time, resources or inclination to investigate themselves.
1) Werewolves.
I like the Dresdenverse werewolves, especially the Alphas. I figure that since the Alphas are mostly college kids, they'll have friends and family that are based in places other than Chicago. I think werewolfery is then going to spread beyond Chicago, as they initiate others and those others start their own packs in other cities.
Now the Alphas generally just patrol for supernatural threats, but their progeny might not be so discriminating. I'm thinking there are going to be some mundane muggings and serial rapes that are going to be stopped by the local 'wolves. That's all well and good, but there will be violations of the First Law by these well meaning kids, and that's going to lead them down dark paths. Enter the PCs.
2) Half-vampire Mobster.
So there's this mob boss. He's a man of will and determination. Nothing happens in his territory without his say so. The Reds try to take him. Now, he likes the strength and other advantages of the half-turned vampire, but giving in to the Hunger and completing the change doesn't fit in with his other goals. He's a sociopath, but one with free will. He's the master of his own destiny.
3) Assassin Wizard.
He kills people for money. Black magic, right? Not quite. He uses completely mundane tools to get the kill. Guns, knives, piano wire, whatever. He just uses magic to get away with murder. Veils to make sure there are no witnesses. Tracking spells to find his prey. Maybe he gets the Lawbreaker stunts, but they don't hit as hard as they would if he just made his targets bones explode.
4) Wizard cult leader.
I can't remember how the Law is worded, but it's the one that says "No Jedi mind trickery". Well you don't need magic for mind control. Cults have mind control techniques that also work. This guys uses those instead of magic. His modest magical talent is just used to lure new recruits. And his church allows multiple marriages (for him, anyway), so he has dozens of wives who have given him scores of children that have been brainwashed since birth, along with being trained in the art of magic.
-
I think number 4 is the better of them. Seems you could work more with that one then the rest. The rest seem to be just cut and dry stuff.
-
All of them. You can never have too many recurring complications. Seriously. If somethings going too smooth? "Oh expletive, it's the [Black Wizard Assassin Dude]."
-
I think number 4 is the better of them. Seems you could work more with that one then the rest. The rest seem to be just cut and dry stuff.
Point taken, but in my defense I find a little bit of cut-and-dried stuff to be useful in introducing new players to a game, especially since they aren't familiar with the world.
The werewolves were meant to be a straightforward illustration of the perils of black magic, even when used with the best intentions. I still see them as one shot villains, most likely in the introductory sessions.
The cult leader I hope to flesh out into a recurring villain. The other two, I'm not sure yet. What I posted was just some initial brainstorming ideas. Once the game comes out, I'll either flesh them out more or decide to scrap them entirely.
-
Point taken, but in my defense I find a little bit of cut-and-dried stuff to be useful in introducing new players to a game, especially since they aren't familiar with the world.
The werewolves were meant to be a straightforward illustration of the perils of black magic, even when used with the best intentions. I still see them as one shot villains, most likely in the introductory sessions.
The cult leader I hope to flesh out into a recurring villain. The other two, I'm not sure yet. What I posted was just some initial brainstorming ideas. Once the game comes out, I'll either flesh them out more or decide to scrap them entirely.
Very True. Maybe you can combine the four together. Make something look cut and dry but has a darker meaning to it.
-
you can also bring in the Fey with some of the lesser Sidhe coming around from time to time.
-
Also remember that cut-and-dried doesn't have to be. After all, Thomas was pretty cut-and-dried when we were first introduced to him.
Take your half-vampire mobster, for example. When the party first meets him, he's the worst possible cross between Bianca and Marcone. Ruthless, brutal, and cold. The second time they meet him, though, they actually are reluctant allies, both fighting his sire (the PCs trying to beat down evil, the mobster just trying to get out from under his sire's thumb). A bit later, the mobster actually comes to the PCs for help. He's come to respect them, see, and thinks they can help him control the Hunger. Have him open with an offer of employment (I've actually always wanted to see an alternate universe where Harry accepted Marcone's offer from Fool Moon). Depending on how things go, he can either then try to appeal to their better natures, or he can turn to blackmail and/or kidnapping hostages to force them to help him. Ultimately, he could end up as an ally. Which could create all kinds of complications, as the other supernatural denizens then assume the PCs also share his morality...
-
Honestly I think it all comes down to basic character develop both in RPG settings and also in books. Just start out with a basic sketch of a "bad" guy/girl then attempt to get into their head so to speak. And Samldanach just gave a great idea on how to do that..
-
Take your half-vampire mobster, for example.
That's actually the direction I was leaning. And I was thinking about giving the assassin ties to the White Council. He kills people, but not with magic. And the Council needs all the help that they can get, so they let it slide. That doesn't matter to the PCs, who are after him because people are dead.
But enough about my guys. Does anyone else want to post their own ideas? And not just so that I can steal ideas. I'm honestly curious what people intend to throw against their players.
-
Well I am doomed to live in a town with no gamers, there are times I really hate this town just for the lack of individuals that have my tastes in fun.
But if I were going to run something, I would have to go with a plot that deals with one of the lesser frey being involved with some shady guys in the shipping industry...
-
1) Werewolves.
I like the Dresdenverse werewolves, especially the Alphas. I figure that since the Alphas are mostly college kids, they'll have friends and family that are based in places other than Chicago. I think werewolfery is then going to spread beyond Chicago, as they initiate others and those others start their own packs in other cities.
Now the Alphas generally just patrol for supernatural threats, but their progeny might not be so discriminating. I'm thinking there are going to be some mundane muggings and serial rapes that are going to be stopped by the local 'wolves. That's all well and good, but there will be violations of the First Law by these well meaning kids, and that's going to lead them down dark paths. Enter the PCs.
I'm not sure that taking werewolf form to attack an enemy is a violation of the First Law. You aren't rendering the enemy helpless by magic, nor harming them directly with your power, just giving yourself an advantage. Personally I would rule this as on a level as creating a magically enhanced weapon for combat - and since that includes the Warden's swords, I rather think that it's one step too far removed for First Law to apply.
-
I'm not sure that taking werewolf form to attack an enemy is a violation of the First Law. You aren't rendering the enemy helpless by magic, nor harming them directly with your power, just giving yourself an advantage. Personally I would rule this as on a level as creating a magically enhanced weapon for combat - and since that includes the Warden's swords, I rather think that it's one step too far removed for First Law to apply.
I see your point, and I don't disagree. However, I am thinking of including elements of intent on Lawbreaking. And beyond that, I make a distinction between what the Council thinks of as law breaking and what the game mechanics require for the stunts.
For the stunts, intent in a big thing (as always, in my game. YMMV). If you intend to kill someone and you use magic to achieve that goal, that counts as a Lawbreaker stunt. It doesn't matter if you take wolf form to hunt down a serial rapist or forge a magic sword or blast them with fire.
Just forging the sword or taking wolf form doesn't count for the stunt. You have to actually try to use it to kill someone. Yes, this means that Wardens will be wracking up Lawbreaker stunts. But they don't go around killing indiscriminately. They pick their targets, and take people for trial when they can.
We've seen that as long as you have a positive refresh rate, you retain free will. And I assume (going by SotC as a model) that advancement will be in the form of receiving new Aspects, which will improve your refresh rate. So it is possible to repeatedly break the Laws and not become a monster. Good thing too, or the Blackstaff would be one scary dude.
In the eyes of the Council, killing someone in self defense or the defense of others is a loop hole that lets you get away with black magic. That doesn't mitigate the damage to your soul (the stunts), but it does give you a "get out of decapitation free" card.
-
Right I had a couple of ideas for possible villians
1. Rich business mogul with a powerful warlock as his cronie. Trump tries to corner the market using mind altering magics, the WC is too busy to handle him but some of the people affected by his actions happen to take offense and take action. Give my PC some leeway to create characters and back stories. Weave it together to have them meet up and eventually confront the Mogul and his goons, or somehow sabotoge him or any other myriad of possible endings.
2. Evil Teacher w/magic kiddies. Cheesy I know but it works for introducing people to the world. The evil teacher takes a few kids on a "field trip" and tries to enthrall them knowing their potential. Kids have limited, babyish abilities and have to work together to get away from the teach and to safety. Probably segue characters into a magic group for future games.
-
Lots of ideas pulled from other games:
1.Preserve nature: The local fae are in need of your services, a normal meeting/ceremonial/portal area is in danger due to unsanctioned waste disposal. Convince the mortals to quit dumping on their land or the fae will get nasty. You could turn this around and have the PC(s) hired by the waste disposal firm to find out who has been sabotaging their operation...not every part of a complex machine is made of iron based material (hoses/belts/tires...you get the idea). Greedy industrialists or vengeful fae?
2.Everyone loves a Cult: With so many options to choose from, it's going to be hard but think about something really nasty for an outsider...C'thulu, everyones favourite tentacle monster, well maybe not that nasty but bad, bad, bad. Runaways and homeless people have been disappearing in increasing numbers. Come to find out there's a blood sacrifice planned or is already in the works as a progressive (gotta beat the clock) deal. Megalomaniac cult leader and his creepy groupies fill out the cast.
A lot can be pulled from the literature, Trolls are going to be a nice thing to play with I think. Vamps less so, I think they're better in ones and twos rather than whole clans/tribes/etc. Just like anything else in the RPG lineup, there's no limit to what you can throw at the PCs as long as you can shoehorn it into the 'verse and make it fun.
-
Bad guys for my game? I've got a dozen ideas. These two are my favorites so far:
#1. The Ghost in the Machine
This one started out as a fairly mundane thing. A wizard who came into his powers late had real trouble dealing with the magic-makes-tech-go-screwy aspect of his existence, as he was a total technophile prior to his discovery. After his apprenticeship, he bends all thought to getting around this problem, and eventually hits the solution. He takes himself on a nice long journey through the Nevernever, and finally hits the place where old technology goes to die. There, he made contact with a . . . something . . . that didn't want to go quietly into that long night, and cut a deal with him to stay relevant. So empowered with great technological hoodoo, said wizard returns and starts breaking the technology that made his cthonic master obsolete. I'm thinking said technology should be something important, like, say, automobiles. Or telecommunications satellites.
#2. The Death of Fire
The old gods have decided to press issues. Prometheus stole the Divine Fire from the gods, and now the gods want it back. Electricity stops working. Fire follows soon after. Only magic can conjure fire, and that makes wizards popular real fast. The White Council flips out, snapped fairly neatly down the middle between 'We could be as messiahs to these people!' and 'Let's help them help themselves, shall we?' Only hope is a long quest into the Nevernever to get the Divine Fire back.
-
Bad guys for my game? I've got a dozen ideas. These two are my favorites so far:
#2. The Death of Fire
The old gods have decided to press issues. Prometheus stole the Divine Fire from the gods, and now the gods want it back. Electricity stops working. Fire follows soon after. Only magic can conjure fire, and that makes wizards popular real fast. The White Council flips out, snapped fairly neatly down the middle between 'We could be as messiahs to these people!' and 'Let's help them help themselves, shall we?' Only hope is a long quest into the Nevernever to get the Divine Fire back.
Fire not working in and of itself should stop the production of electricity (considering how the vast majority of electrical power is produced), but if electricity stopped working everything with a central nervous system would immediately fall down dead.
-
I like the 'Fire not Working' thing... interesting.
So I have two main thoughts right now. First is for a shorter introductory story arc, second a much larger scale recurring villain, but definately off-the-charts into 'untouchable'. The first, at least, will be long, as I want to describe the story as well.
1.) Many unexplained bank robberies over the past several months, from different local banks. No holdups, just money is GONE. Now, however, a security guard was found dead behind the most recent bank to be 'hit'. Agent from a group consisting of the local bank owners and managers comes to the PCs (one wants to be a PI... yay!). Agent indicates that police are looking into it, and at least one more detective agency is, but unusual circumstances regarding the death caused one of the owners to suggest the PC detective, whom he had heard of as looking into 'unusual' cases.
PCs are told that the dead security guard was autopsied and found that most of his heart was missing, with no sign of external injuries. The heart was found in the alley with the man. This info is not released, and the police believe that something else is going on, like someone screwed up somehow at the scene, but they are reporting a heart attack to the press.
Upon investigation, PCs can discover through careful searching of video cameras that one young man is at every crime scene. Already long story short: this young man is naturally Gifted, and has learned to use his mind to focus on a spatial area and transport whatever is there to him (over short distances). He has been using this skill to steal money, and when a guard happened upon him, he reacted by doing the same to the man's heart.
So we have a young man who has been stealing, and who broke the 1st law. Don't know if my player's characters will know about the Laws, but even so, they will certainly be looking for him to resolve the case.
Characters shouldn't find out until resolution that the boy lives at home with his mother and deathly ill sister, who is now getting treatment because of the money the boy was stealing. The intent is, again, an introduction. They get an intro to magic, sleuthing (simple case), consequences of magic, and finally that there are many motivations for the NPCs, and it's not always just greed.
2.) This is the crazy one. I won't go into story here, though, as he should be a recurring factor. The bank owner who suggested that the agent contact our detective PC in the story above is actually more of a baddie than just a businessman. :) He's actually a demon. Yes, a lying-to-badness demon. In fact, he is part of what you might call the 'High Court' of Hell, taken form on earth and meddling however he's allowed. That's kind of the crux, though. The PCs shouldn't know what is allowed for the <truly> higher powers like angels and demons. In this case, he isn't allowed to directly harm any of them. He uses his position, power, and influence to both toy with them and get them to work for him, though they don't usually realize it. And probably fairly early on he'll show up in a Marcone-esque way at the scene of a supernatural battle and show his true self (though rather than a mortal among nasties, this would be more like Godzilla among gekkos)... just so he can later rub their noses in working for him and helping him as he goes about his evil badness...
Too much?
:D
-
Some other cut-and-dried ideas:
#1 I’m still stuck on the passing comment in the beginning of Storm Front that in 1994 the city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin disappeared off the face of the earth for 2 hours in an "unseely incursion" - what would cause that? An experiment gone wrong? The Unseely court must have had help from this side of the Nevernever. What did the Fae want with Milwaukee? I'm trying to remember when Gen Con left Milwaukee - wouldn't it be fun to take an entire international gaming convention to the Nevernever? Might get your non-Butcher reading gamers to relate (bring in all your favorite stereo type gamers as NPCs). ;D
#2 Evil Artifact - Bob isn't the only spirit with some knowledge - maybe there are other spirit homes with some not-so-helpful spirits trapped in them. Either one character inherits the cursed thing and starts giving the group information that endangers their lives (spells with protective parts missing, gives them true names of demons who will 'help' the characters), a warlock comes looking for the thing, or the characters are contacted by a distraught family who bought the thing and are now at each other's throats, giving each one a bad attitude and access to uncontrolled magic. Can the characters stop the family from killing each other and get the spirit's home away from them before it's too late?
#3 (Maybe for beginners) The Quest - the characters come into a treasure map (GM's decision as to what the final prize is - if there is one at all - Fae do like to play tricks you know...) The map has riddles and paths into and out of the Nevernever. Is your group Like Dresden and have financial worries to consider? Maybe the only thing they walk away with is a little wisdom or maybe Al Capone (insert your favorite bandit rogue) really did squirrel away some cash for a rainy day... You can add as many complications to this as befits your game group.
#4 The 'Unexploded Bomb' - An old enchantment meant to protect an old building that used to be the home of a worlock will be activated if city hall gets its way. Can the characters stop it from protecting itself before the city demolition crew activates the full power of the magic? If the wrecking crew goes in, it turns into a rescue attempt against the spirits whose sole purpose is to trap/killed the people inside.
#5 Fire up the Way-Back Machine - Never Swim Against the Flow of Time - There is a warlock who is breaking one of the laws of magic BIG TIME. He has created a doorway back to the past to change something - can the group stop him without drawing the attention of the wardens in both 'time zones'? The group would have to figure out what he is trying to stop/start without drawing any attention to themselves. Lets hope your group is not subtlety challenged.
#2-4 would be shorter mods that could be modified for any group power level. #3 and #4 can be almost straight 'dungeon crawl' mods if your players trend that way. Of course you can always throw in some deux ex machina as well - one of the 'innocent' bystanders is secretly a warlock/changeling/vampire...etc. Your reoccuring bad guy can be secretly behind this plot and looking to get the group killed/arrested/annoyed...you get the idea.
Hope that helps.
-
Sorry about that prophet224,
jumped a little ahead of myself and didn't comment on your idea. I kinda like the Working-for-the-bad-guy-without-knowing-it, angle. Gives a little more politics to the plot.
He's actually a demon. Yes, a lying-to-badness demon. In fact, he is part of what you might call the 'High Court' of Hell, taken form on earth and meddling however he's allowed. That's kind of the crux, though. The PCs shouldn't know what is allowed for the <truly> higher powers like angels and demons. In this case, he isn't allowed to directly harm any of them. He uses his position, power, and influence to both toy with them and get them to work for him, though they don't usually realize it.
I don't know if you need to make him a demon though, or to go into the hierarchy of hell. The more powerful members of the White Court Vamps would enjoy something like that too. I think a major baddie like a demon would be something to hand over to the wardens or the Knights of the Cross for their watch list. Although it would be interesting to take a page from the TV series and postulate that the White Council does know about him and has made a truce of some kind. If the players go running to the wardens they are told, "Yes, Yes, we know about this guy - but is he actually breaking a law of magic?" - no - "Well I'm sorry we can't help you, but that kid you found is definitely out of luck."
The Knights of the Cross would take it more seriously I think. Still if all the bad guy is doing, is tempting people, offering them their heart's desires I got the impression that they wouldn't take direct action either...You could put another twist of the knife in the story and if the characters aren't careful with the thief/kid when they catch him (like they turn him in to the police and the "banker" promptly drops the charges if...), the "banker" offers to fund curing his sister in exchange for his soul - "You killed that man son, your going to hell anyway, why not seal the deal now and give your sister a chance? Hmm? How much worse could it be than the guilt your living with now?"
Then the Thief/kid could come back later as a reluctant villain, bound to do his masters bidding, he now tempts other people...*cue evil laughter*
-
Hey, thanks for commenting at all! ;) I like your tweaks, too. Thanks!
See, the main reason I want him to be THAT bad is for the feel. The characters may know they are little fish in a big pond, but just knowing that he is an actual demon throws alot of questions at them. Before that, though, it opens up that there really truly is a "whole 'nother" playing field beyond what even they (as 'awakened', for lack of a better word) know. The dawning realization of just how truly small they are in the universal scheme should be fascinating, while the fact that this deity-level (with a little 'd') being has taken an interest in them should pull them up closer to everything too, not making them feel like what they do doesn't matter.
After that, the characters walk through life looking at things with an even more slightly different eye than everyone else, and know that there is something going on out there with rules they can't even begin to guess, and players they can't even be on the field with. Tip of the iceberg... showing them his true self is like sticking your head in the water near that iceberg... you get a sense of the vastness, but not of what it really is...
Another thought, too... so the players run to the White Council and they go "Uhm... yeah... just ignore him. They're around here and there." because even the Council can't play at that level. But the players can still try, and who knows what might happen. It would be great to have a Knight in that one... THEY might have a chance.
-
#2. The Death of Fire
The old gods have decided to press issues. Prometheus stole the Divine Fire from the gods, and now the gods want it back. Electricity stops working. Fire follows soon after. Only magic can conjure fire, and that makes wizards popular real fast. The White Council flips out, snapped fairly neatly down the middle between 'We could be as messiahs to these people!' and 'Let's help them help themselves, shall we?' Only hope is a long quest into the Nevernever to get the Divine Fire back.
I smell a crossover with the works of S.M.Stirling. ;D
Hey, I just had a great idea for a 'bad guy' with some moral complexity - how about a Frankestien-type construct, either actively killing people, or just quietly existing, albiet as a MAJOR violation of the no-necromancy law? Or, the necromancer could be the villain, with the construct being a side character?
-
My villains have always been preachers. Not sure what that says about me.
But I think at least one bad guy will be an ultra-conservative preacher with a son that has some magical ability which the father takes as being possessed by the devil. I hope at least one of the players takes a Michael like character. Then I can play pure faith off of nut case faith. If the players get the son away from the father, then the father would be ripe for making a deal with powers he believes are on the right side. I’m sure that would lead to some fun interaction somehow.
That needs some more work. But it is at least a start.
I like the ideas I have seen posted here too. Lots of seeds for good ideas.
Devin
-
Well this is why we need this game to get out and in print because there are so many potental Antagonists and ways to introduce them that it is part of what will make this game great.
-
The best villains are the ones that sneak up on the good guys. The ones who seem harmless, or even worse, seem cute and attractive. We like them, we could never suspect them. They are beneath the radar.