(03-20-2015, 01:10 PM)Apl_Juice Wrote: Villain is simply a bad, bad term to use in day to day RP, and really goes to show how different roleplay writing is from typical writing.
By definition (at least, as it pertains to writing, film, etc), a villain does not exist without a plot. An unlawful person is not a villain by virtue of being unlawful; it is merely a role to fulfill. They are nothing more than some player's character otherwise.
There's an enormous spectrum of unlawful, chaotic, and or evil people, so I won't even touch on that. I will say that, however, any of these (in addition to many 'good' characters) can fulfill a villainous role in a plot, so long as they're willing to do wrong against a protagonist. Again, there's a wide spectrum of what constitutes as wrong, from stealing from the rich and corrupt all the way to genocide.
That, as far as I'm concerned, are the only rules to villainy. The Joker is a literal crazy person and is one of the most beloved characters in comics. The xenomorph is nothing but a predator, and winds up being a horrifying villain. I can't even count the number of logical computer AI villains there are.
*Reaches out from under his hat and points to this post*
Thematically, an antagonist (see: Villain) is the plot device that works against the protagonist (see: Hero). So technically speaking, in open RP, there is no such thing as a villain or antagonist unless those individuals pertain to a specific story within the Open RP.
Example:
Mister A is an adventurer who saved a village from pirates bent on loot and plunder. Mister B was one of those pirates who survived the battle and vowed revenge on Mister A for the defeat. <-This is an antagonist in fiction.
Example 2:
Mister A is an adventurer who saved a village from pirates bent on loot and plunder. Mister B is an angry ex-merchant whose business was ruined and happened to be bumped into by Mister A on the Ruby Road Exchange. Because of that perceived slight, Mister B seeks to mess up Mister A's life. <- This is an antagonist in fiction.
Example 3:
Mister A is an adventurer who saved a village from pirates bent on loot and plunder. Mister B was exposed to too much aether and it warped his mind, so he stabs Mister A in the throat with a fork. <- This is not an antagonist in fiction.Â
The difference is the plot. Random acts of chaos and violence don't make a villain specifically, because that character's random acts of chaos and violence are the story that player is telling at the time. Technically, that makes the crazy fork-stabber-guy the protagonist and anyone who reacts to it would become the antagonists. (Don't let me blow your minds now)
Now, to further make things more confusingly clear (Yay, I love oxymorons), in RP; Fork-stabber is telling his story of chaos and throat-poking but invites Mister A, C, and Miss D to join in the story. Whose the protagonist then? Still Fork-stabber. A,C, and D are now support characters in the tale. They are meant to enhance the story with their actions, regardless of if they decide to stab people with forks too or attempt to apprehend and browbeat Fork-stabber for being a psychopath.Â
Finally, upon the conclusion of the story (be it Fork-stabber's success or failure), A,C,D and even Mister B or anyone else watching the event unfold from the sidelines has the capacity of creating their own story about the events in "The Marvelous Adventures of Fork-stabber" and thus become the tellers of their own stories. This makes them the protagonists and Fork-stabber becomes a plot device, not the antagonist (unless Fork-stabber decides to mess with whoever has begun their story and stab them with his mighty forks, at which point he becomes the antagonist.)
Point being: RP is a fluid progression of stories where we as PCs jump from role to role (protagonist, antagonist, support, and plot device) willy-nilly.Â
And whether a character is a protagonist or antagonist depends entirely on who is telling the story at the time. Mr. Freeze's crusade to save his wife by stealing diamonds from rich people is only a villainous tale because it's told from the perspective of Batman. Otherwise, he's a man trying to save his wife. For more on this, check out a film called "Falling Down".
P.S.: On the subject of villainous ERPers. A simple quote will suffice: Whatever floats your boat.
*Retreats under his hat*
What a colossal waste of time and energy.
