![](https://ffxiv-roleplayers.com/mybb18/images/reksio/flecha.png)
I think there's a lot of good points here and I'm planning on adding this thread to a list of others I'll be linking from the RP Handbook in an upcoming edit (hopefully soon).
I think the single most important element for a 'villain' type character to be realistic and substantial in the MMO RP setting is something that a couple others touched upon in earlier posts. There really does need to be a /reason/ for the character's behavior. Some of the most compelling villains to me in past RP are those that can be identified with - at least on some level.
As with all RPed characters, I place a lot of personal emphasis on the underlying motivations that set that character into motion. I find myself constantly asking why a particular character might behave a particular way. This has transitioned into IC moreso lately with Eva, because she is sort of analytical of others' behaviors and the psychology behind them. But from a purely OOC perspective, I don't think there is anything more frustrating than a character that is bad-tempered or "evil" without some concrete reason for such.
Now don't get me wrong! This doesn't mean that said character needs to express lamentations about how his family was slain by coeurls before he goes on a mass-kitten killing spree. It simply means that the actions should have underlying reasons, rather than just "evil for the sake of being evil." Garlean types have a good reason. Anyone who lost a loved one might become consumed by revenge. But I do think that it's important - even for the throw-away villain alts - to not lack that bit of substance that essentially makes them who they are.
Our other character Ben (not an alt, as there are two of us players who share these two characters, though admittedly Ben doesn't get as much play time) may be perceived as a villain. And others might see him as a hero, depending on perspective of course. There are very specific reasons for the things that he does, and while he would surely regard himself as righteous and pious, some of the deeds are downright despicable. Someone in one of the earlier posts mentioned that a villain seldom ever views himself as such - and I think that's probably the best point to reinforce here with this example.
I'll end this with a rather appropriate character quote that sums my feelings up pretty succinctly: "There is no good and there is no evil. There is only truth and perspective."
I think the single most important element for a 'villain' type character to be realistic and substantial in the MMO RP setting is something that a couple others touched upon in earlier posts. There really does need to be a /reason/ for the character's behavior. Some of the most compelling villains to me in past RP are those that can be identified with - at least on some level.
As with all RPed characters, I place a lot of personal emphasis on the underlying motivations that set that character into motion. I find myself constantly asking why a particular character might behave a particular way. This has transitioned into IC moreso lately with Eva, because she is sort of analytical of others' behaviors and the psychology behind them. But from a purely OOC perspective, I don't think there is anything more frustrating than a character that is bad-tempered or "evil" without some concrete reason for such.
Now don't get me wrong! This doesn't mean that said character needs to express lamentations about how his family was slain by coeurls before he goes on a mass-kitten killing spree. It simply means that the actions should have underlying reasons, rather than just "evil for the sake of being evil." Garlean types have a good reason. Anyone who lost a loved one might become consumed by revenge. But I do think that it's important - even for the throw-away villain alts - to not lack that bit of substance that essentially makes them who they are.
Our other character Ben (not an alt, as there are two of us players who share these two characters, though admittedly Ben doesn't get as much play time) may be perceived as a villain. And others might see him as a hero, depending on perspective of course. There are very specific reasons for the things that he does, and while he would surely regard himself as righteous and pious, some of the deeds are downright despicable. Someone in one of the earlier posts mentioned that a villain seldom ever views himself as such - and I think that's probably the best point to reinforce here with this example.
I'll end this with a rather appropriate character quote that sums my feelings up pretty succinctly: "There is no good and there is no evil. There is only truth and perspective."
"One of the deep secrets of life is that all that is really worth doing is what we do for others." Â ~ Lewis Carol
Eva's Journals  |  Eva's Wiki Page (coming soon)  |  RP Handbook
Eva's Journals  |  Eva's Wiki Page (coming soon)  |  RP Handbook