The gentle art of making enemies

[ronnieB]

does anyone here has tips as to how to create good villans and foes for the PC's to face?

here's a trait i just thoght of:
Dominator (character trait): you feel that you must be in complete controle of everything and everyone.

[Kublai]

Traits are great for creating memorable foes! It'll give a villain motivation and proper reactions to PC activities. Imagine a villain with the Traits Megalomaniac, Greedy, Scheming, and Vain. Right there you have enough information to act and react properly and in character.

Also, exploit the PCs own BITs (Beliefs, Instincts, and Traits) to create villains that will take advantage of these stengths and weaknesses. For example, if a PC had a Instinct to always eavesdrop on conversations, a villain could easily seed that chat with false facts to lure the PC into a trap!

[luke]

kublai's dead on.

Every time I make a "villain" of pure numbers he winds up dead faster than I can say, "Wait!"

But when I take a minute to give my antagonists BITs, they end up being much more interesting and longer lasting.

Remember, though BW can be a super-hackslash fest, it is best when it is played on a deliberate and personal level. One emotional, well-conceived villain is always leagues better than hordes of mindless mooks.

Also IMO, villains who were once or who will be friends of the PCs are the best. These lends an emotional weight that anonymous "badguys" just don't have.


-abzu