The Chamber of the lost souls
What can I say? I am a DM, and I doubt there is a DM out there that doesn't like villains, but the fact is, players also love hating villains, they are the great opponents they are anxious to defeat, to make them pay for everything they've to them and others. Villains are truly a vital part of AD&D, and a part that the DM must take special care with, since most campaigns have a strong support on villains, especially of the recurring kind (think Ravenloft).
Maybe some of these villains may seem way too powerful for low level parties, actually, that's the point; villains are always more powerful than heroes. You shouldn't be afraid to pit a low level party against a powerful villain, after all, many villains would not step into the fray themselves, but rather send some lackeys. Or if the villain actually steps in to fight, then your players will have to use their brains (not their muscles) to beat him, and this leads to excellent and memorable roleplaying situations. (I still remember when my relatively low-level Ravenloft group messed with The Masked Man, and actually defeated him).
A few clarifications:
First:
I do not include rolled hit points, the reason for this is quite simple; everyone plays differently, some people roll hit points in a certain way, others don't roll at all. So all I do is tell you the dices you should roll (example; a level 5 cleric will have 5d8 hit points), you should determine hit points according to your preferences and type of campaign.Second:
for the same reasons (some DMs don't give magical items, others give a lot), as far as magical equipment goes, I've included the absolutely necessary to keep the villain's "flavour" intact, you may wish to give them some more.Third:
Every DM appreciates a good (or bad?) villain, and if you've got a good (or bad?) one, I'd certainly appreciate if you found the time to send it to me, and don't worry, I'm not a thief, if you made it, you get the credit for it.Fourth:
I tried to make the background references as generic as possible, most of these villains were used in home campaigns or specific ones, you may need to modify them a bit to suit your campaign.And fifth:
I'll update this section regularly, I have lots and lots of villains (I am, after all, a sadistic DM, I love villains), I just need to write them down.
And here they are, hope you find them useful (let me know what you think, and sign the guestbook)
Arthur Godheider, the Masked Man (by Rahvi): A deadly Ravenloft murderer with a taste for the macabre, and young women's hearts. Definitely more than a challenge for any party, and also one of my favourite villains.
Lord Draven, The Black Duke (By Rahvi): An excentric, cruel and ambitious Duke with aspirations to the crown and a vast network to support him, with the strangest habits due to a terrible illness he has suffered since his youth. One of those villains that players love to hate, just ask mine.
Azkarath (by Rahvi): Cruel, despicable, elusive, heartless, that's a good way to describe Azkarath, an evil priest of disease that roams the countryside, ravaging entire villages with his plagues and beasts.
Phantonus (by Rahvi): A conniving genius, an arrogant and snobbish wizard that's guaranteed to get on your player's nerves because of his attitude, and gain their respect due to his powerful magic.
Kehdrazz (by Rahvi): An ancient fiend that feeds on the sentient races' fear, imprisoned thousand of years ago and released by an unwary party of adventurers' careless actions.
Pierre Lantier, guildmaster of "The Claw" (by Rahvi): A nearly untouchable villain, a very important and influential merchant, who secretly controls the feared thieves' guild known as The Claw; a fully developed guild with a couple of assassins and other important NPCs.
Sir Philip Hargrove (By Rahvi, based on a concept by my friend Sufri): A villainous paladin (yes, that's right, a paladin) under the control of a powerful evil artifact that has twisted his fight against evil into an all out carnage. A battle where anyone whom he perceives as evil (everyone in a way or another) is put to death.
The Mind Burners (By Rahvi): Four deadly mercenary ilithids, as good a challenge as any for any party of adventurers. The Mind burners make excellent assassins and bodyguards for other evil villains willing to pay the price for their services.
General Richard Dragmire (By Rahvi): Once a war hero, this proud general has fallen to the lure of power, believing he is the only one who can properly rule his kingdom. And even now wages a silent war of treachery and intrigue on the crown.
Lazard Hoche "Vengeance" (By Rahvi): Another Ravenloft villain, a sum of murderous, vengeful spirits inhabiting the body of a man consumed by hatred.
The Dark Crusader (By Rahvi): The murderous result of a mad cult's experiments, the dark crusader is a boy who was taken from his dying mother's grasp to be trained as the perfect warrior and the bane of all things good and lawful.
