92 lines
3.3 KiB
HTML
92 lines
3.3 KiB
HTML
<!doctype html>
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<html lang="en">
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<head>
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<meta charset="UTF-8" />
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<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" />
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<title>Antagonist Design Tips</title>
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<link rel="stylesheet" href="book-page.css" />
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</head>
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<h1>ANTAGONISTS</h1>
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<h2>Chapter: On a Smaller Scale</h2>
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<p>
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One recurring element of natural fantasy campaigns is that they limit
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themselves to a rather small space and time frame: pretty often, a natural
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fantasy Villain might renounce their goal or be permanently defeated after
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just one or two confrontations.
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</p>
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<p>
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From this point of view, the number of
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<strong>Ultima Points</strong> available to these Villains might become a
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problem: a Villain might have 5 or 6 Ultima Points left when their story has
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reached a satisfying conclusion in terms of narrative. This problem might
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present itself in any short campaign, but the usual pace of natural fantasy
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games makes it more noticeable.
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</p>
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<p>Here is some advice to offset it:</p>
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<ul>
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<li>
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<strong>Avoid supreme Villains.</strong> If you foresee a short and
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focused campaign set in a small region, you can easily limit yourself to a
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few minor Villains and a single major Villain, without resorting to
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supreme Villains. If you change your mind, you can always call for an
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escalation (see Core Rulebook, page 102).
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</li>
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<li>
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<strong>Make Villains fearsome.</strong> Spend Ultima Points every time a
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Villain fails a Check, misses a target, or is afflicted by two or more
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status effects; every now and then, do it even when they succeed, just to
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improve the Result or the High Roll!
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</li>
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<li>
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<strong>Fiction first.</strong> If the Player Characters’ actions create a
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situation where the Villain no longer has a reason to act (a rather common
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occurrence in natural fantasy, where many antagonists are driven by very
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simple needs), it’s not wrong to discard all the remaining Ultima Points
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and stop considering this character a Villain.
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</li>
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</ul>
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<hr style="border: none; border-top: 1px dashed #ccc; margin: 40px 0" />
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<h2>Subverting The Premises</h2>
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<p>
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Natural fantasy campaigns offer excellent chances to subvert many
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conventions of the JRPG genre and design Villains who are essentially
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invincible if battle against them is approached as usual (for example, the
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Heart of Eldgren on page 205).
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</p>
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<h3>Examples of Subversion:</h3>
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<ul>
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<li>
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A ghost that, if defeated, comes back to haunt the village at night,
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unless someone returns a specific item to them.
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</li>
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<li>
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A monster under a curse who, if brought to 0 Hit Points without purifying
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them first via a Ritual or Project, completely loses their conscience and
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becomes an abomination.
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</li>
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<li>
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A truly ancient android who, when in Crisis, automatically Surrenders if
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convinced to trust humanity via a Clock.
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</li>
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</ul>
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<blockquote>
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“You humans have a habit of considering cruel what is merely equitable. For
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years you stole my children, and now I shall steal yours.”
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</blockquote>
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<div class="meta-info">
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<em
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>Note: The following text appears separated from the main narrative
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content.</em
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>
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</div>
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</html>
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