Evil Done Right

*"Villains who twirl their mustaches are easy to spot. Those who clothe themselves in good deeds are well-camouflaged."*

— **Capt. Jean-Luc Picard**, *Star Trek: The Next Generation*, "The Drumhead"

As seen in Piety Explained - A Clash of Faith - Roleplaying Tips this is a page dedicated to playing an evil character for everyone and you to enjoy. The tips are listed at the bottom.

For an in-depth perspective of Evil within Dungeons and Dragons, see the sourcebook, Book of Vile Darkness.

## **Playing the Villain**

Isaac Asimov had Three Laws of Robotics. There are three rules for playing an evil character within Sacred Kingdom.

#### **The Zeroth Law - The DMs Have Final Say**

When the DM(s) make(s) a decision, abide by it. ***Be excellent to your fellow players.***

#### **The First Law - Establish and Respect Boundaries**

If at any point, you are uncertain and/or concerned about another member of the SK community, you must communicate this matter to all relevant parties. It is mandatory that you obtain consent prior to any behavior that ***could*** inflict lasting, even permanent damage. ***If you are ever unsure, ask anyway.***

#### **The Second Law - Actions have Consequences**

There are laws posted by the front gate leading into Dawnport. The penalties for violating these laws are listed. Many include exile or death sentences. This can lead to permanent character death. ***The setting will be enforced.***

#### **The Third Law - Don't be a Jerk Outside of Game**

At no point will, *'it's what my character would do,'* be accepted as justification to being an active detriment for the server. We are here to have fun as a community. ***Being evil for the lulz is poor form.***

## **How to be Good at being Bad**

#### **Have a Goal in Mind**

1. Great villains have great goals. At the beginning, define your goal as narrowly as possible. This will prevent you from 'scope creep.'
2. Scope creep is the slow, imperceptible expansion of your 'scope of vision.' What was once a laser point, is a flashlight/torch with a dying battery.
3. Talk to the DMs about your goal to see how feasible it is.
4. If your goal was visualized as a target marker, build your plans 'out,' starting from the bull's eye - ***your ultimate goal***.
5. As an out of character note - attempting to become a god is never going to happen. It will catastrophically and spectacularly fail.

#### **Inspiration from the Wicked**

Even card-carrying, dog kicking, irreparably insane villains have a goal. Heath Ledger's Joker from The Dark Knight was hired by Gotham City's mob bosses to kill Batman. The Joker embodies themes of chaos, anarchy and obsession: throughout the film, he expresses a desire to upset the social order in Gotham through crime, and defines himself by his conflict with Batman.

#### **Be Patient**

Let's be honest here, planning can be incredibly boring and having patience to wait for the right sequence to occur can feel like it's taking forever. Unfortunately, real life is a persistent and powerful force in the gaming world. It may take weeks, even months, to see a plan to fruition.

Develop contingencies and play cautiously. Rushing a plan can result in a problem you may not be able to handle. All that diabolical scheming might go to waste.

#### **As (Not) Seen On TV**

Movie villains are powerful because they're written that way. Darth Vader can force choke anyone he feels like at any given moment. Most importantly, no one did a damn thing about it. That is because he was written that way. The Empire's human resources department is not going to hold him accountable.

Unlike cinema, ***this community does hold players accountable***. Always remember actions have consequences. We let people know when their actions are disrupting the overall enjoyment.

There is no definitive end to Sacred Kingdoms. ***It is impossible to 'win' the game.***

#### **By My Powers Combined...**

This is a persistent world full of many player characters and non-player characters. Their interests will rarely, if ever, align with your own. Someone always wants something.

if you want to conscript a legion of doom, acquire a fiendish artifact, build a temple to Shar, etc., you will have to do it through roleplay and investing resources. Nothing will be handed over because you asked for it. You must earn your power(s).

## **Villainous Roleplaying Tips**

### **Do's**

* Read Using Skills in Roleplay and Social Skills in Roleplay.
* Be mindful of what you say and do. ***The guards are watching.***
* Think like a spy in enemy territory.
* If you worship an evil deity, keep your mouth shut.
* If your deity is secretive, ***keep your mouth shut.***
* Build up a reputation of trustworthiness. It's very hard to prosecute an evil-doer if the villain has good publicity.
* Wear a disguise.
	+ An effective disguise means your appearance is unrecognizable from how your character is normally perceived.
	+ A wardrobe change that covers your characters face is a good start.
	+ Enchantment, Transmutation, Illusion spells help with this.
* Use aliases - conduct business under a different name.
* Have someone else do the work for you.

### **Don't's**

* Attract unwanted attention. Actions have consequences.
* Openly disparage The Triad. You can be legally charged with blasphemy.

* Openly practice Necromancy - it has been outlawed.
* If your deity's practices are 'outlawed' in Dawnport, do not do not display your deity's holy symbol openly.
	+ Disciples of Velsharoon should be ***especially*** careful.