What do you want out of an RPG villain?

[Wolf Kanno]

Similar to the other thread, what type of villains do you like the best in RPGs?

[VeloZer0]

I'm not so much set on a specific type, there are just a few things I don't want. My main beef is with really sucky motivation. I don't care that they are developed in super great length, or if they have a huge back story. All I care is that what I do know makes sense. I shouldn't be rolling my eyes when they have the huge reveal about their plan and why they are going about it. Cartoon comic book viliany I don't buy, but I don't really need someone's entire life story to accept the fact that they might just want to seize power for the sake of power.

Even a character like Kefka is fine. He does pointless evil for the sake of evil, but the fact that there isn't a huge justification for it is one of the central aspects of his character. Had he revealed some big traumatic experience that made him so messed up in the head it probably would have made things a lot weaker overall.

[Pumpkin]

Someone with a strong story. I do like some villains who are just evil, but my favorite villains are usually the ones who aren't just "evil" but who have a more morally ambiguous story.

[Ayen]

I don't think about it much. If the villain is well written I'll usually like them.

[Christmas]

Someone or something with a tail!

Or have a pet rooster.

[black orb]

>>> A mad necromancer who hides in a tower from hell, and has a bunch of naked clones of the main character for his personal usage..

[Ultima Shadow]

"Sympathetic villains are usually boring. The
best villains by far are always pure evil
bastards, corrupt to the very core.
Sadistic and brutal, yet intelligent and
manipulative. They commit horrible acts,
for nothing but their own amusement.
I don't talk about the emos who just
want the world to end, but the truly
evil beings whose greatest pleasure
is kicking others into utter misery!
Ah yes, true villains should be ruthless,
hateful and cruel! Using any means
to achieve their twisted goals and
trample on those who stand in their way."











"You forgot to mention 'egocentric'."
"Ah, yes! That's another trait
that the best villains have."

[metagloria]

Villainy.

[Karifean]

Hmm, I like it when a villain is not pitch-black, but rather you could see yourself being in their shoes. Being able to empathize with what made them what they are, why they do what they do, and why it may not be evil but either misguided or just a different perspective on what should be or needs to be done. More antagonist rather than villain if you look at it that way, but simply villain if you look at it without empathy.

Then again, I also very much enjoy villains that are just...

Yes. That.

I appreciate both ways. Both have spawned villains I like very much, though my favorite is one of the latter.

[The Man]

I don't know that I have a set type of RPG villain I enjoy. I like Kefka and Luca Blight who are just complete monsters without any redeeming characteristics (although Luca Blight has a backstory that at least explains what made him that way), but I also like (SPOILER)Albert Simon from Shadow Hearts who has completely sympathetic motivations and ultimately comes across as only having a difference in tactics with the party. I also quite like Shinra from FFVII as an antagonist and wish they had been developed more because you don't see enough greedy corporations in RPGs. And then I like antagonists like Gilgamesh and Ultros who are almost as much comic relief as they are actual villains. So I'm not sure I have a set type of villain I enjoy. They mostly just need to be compelling characters, I think.

[Mirage]

Someone you have a hard time decide whether is good or evil. Someone that almost makes you want to fight with them instead of against them. Someone who feels like a real person. Someone who challenges your moral compass.

[LunarWeaver]

Kuja's phenomenal fashion sense.

[Mercen-X]

The Villain should match one of the character alignment traits (any that are not Lawful Good can lean toward evil actions)

Whereas the Hero will most likely be the Lawful Good Paragon (Warrior of Light), the villain may be:

Chaotic Good Anti-Hero (most probably Golbez)... more the hero's rival with morally ambiguous behavior than an actual villain. This guy typically displays visual disdain/disregard/petty amusement for the hero's half-handed methods. They could be Robin Hood or they could be Red Hood, but their desire is always to benefit the world in the end.
Chaotic Neutral Rogue (Faris?)... pirates, thieves, and other lowly criminals whose actions are not affected by the question of good or evil... but they never do anything overly extreme. This type of villain would be best for a very child-friendly story. The "fox" in animal stories.
Chaotic Evil Monster (Kefka, duh)... similarly to the Rogue, their actions are not dictated by "evil" motives, they're just fascinated by fear, death, and destruction.
Neutral Good Idealist (I don't know)... logic-driven individuals have the capacity to do the greatest evils in their willingness to cooperate with the "wrong people" in hopes of doing good. "The Road to Hell"...
Neutral Evil Tyrant (Vayne?)... the giant penis who will do whatever it takes and work with whoever he has to to get what he wants... which is usually control... control of a city, of people's minds/wills, of the world, of the universe, of time, etc.
True Neutral Jack (Shadow)... mercenaries, bounty hunters, and other characters who can be "bought" are most typically afforded more easily by the villains and thus are most commonly villains.
Lawful Neutral Soldier (Gabranth)... the characters who do whatever it takes to establish peace and order at the cost of true tranquility (life without fear).
Lawful Evil Dictator (Palamecia)... not unlike the Lawful Neutral character, these villains adhere strongly to a sense of order if only because variables and contingencies are more often a threat to their overall control.

[Lone Wolf Leonhart]

Someone who appears to be the games main antagonist from the start but secretly has long term plans that end up making them a strong supporting character by the end.

As far as true villains go, final boss style, I'd like them to have depth beyond "I will consume all for the sake of consumption". They need to justify their actions, whether self serving or otherwise. If I look at the world from their position I want to see where they're coming from and see why someone would choose that path.

[Christmas]

Memorable with Character Development. Preferably not those that appeared suddenly in the end like Necron.

Also with a distinctive feature such as a laughter or a LONG SWORD.