ANTAGONISTS

Chapter: On a Smaller Scale

One recurring element of natural fantasy campaigns is that they limit themselves to a rather small space and time frame: pretty often, a natural fantasy Villain might renounce their goal or be permanently defeated after just one or two confrontations.

From this point of view, the number of Ultima Points available to these Villains might become a problem: a Villain might have 5 or 6 Ultima Points left when their story has reached a satisfying conclusion in terms of narrative. This problem might present itself in any short campaign, but the usual pace of natural fantasy games makes it more noticeable.

Here is some advice to offset it:

• Avoid supreme Villains. If you foresee a short and focused campaign set in a small region, you can easily limit yourself to a few minor Villains and a single major Villain, without resorting to supreme Villains. If you change your mind, you can always call for an escalation (see Core Rulebook, page 102).
• Make Villains fearsome. Spend Ultima Points every time a Villain fails a Check, misses a target, or is afflicted by two or more status effects; every now and then, do it even when they succeed, just to improve the Result or the High Roll!
• Fiction first. If the Player Characters’ actions create a situation where the Villain no longer has a reason to act (a rather common occurrence in natural fantasy, where many antagonists are driven by very simple needs), it’s not wrong to discard all the remaining Ultima Points and stop considering this character a Villain.

Subverting The Premises

Natural fantasy campaigns offer excellent chances to subvert many conventions of the JRPG genre and design Villains who are essentially invincible if battle against them is approached as usual (for example, the Heart of Eldgren on page 205).

Examples of Subversion:

• A ghost that, if defeated, comes back to haunt the village at night, unless someone returns a specific item to them.
• A monster under a curse who, if brought to 0 Hit Points without purifying them first via a Ritual or Project, completely loses their conscience and becomes an abomination.
• A truly ancient android who, when in Crisis, automatically Surrenders if convinced to trust humanity via a Clock.

“You humans have a habit of considering cruel what is merely equitable. For years you stole my children, and now I shall steal yours.”