The Patron- This is a rich NPC or even a powerful NPC who takes the pc's under his wing. He can either be working toward an honest betterment of the world, or maybe he is really an evil douche hose, trying to get the pc's to do what he needs. Treat these characters with extreme amount of caution. Its easy for pc's to get demanding of their patrons. Make sure you have a ceiling in mind of what this person can and cannot do. These characters usually take the form of nobility in fantasy settings, or powerful magic users, or dragons in disguise, or demons in disguise, or spirits in meat suit disguises, or faeries in disguise (I'm trying to say disguise them if you're rolling fantasy), or six goblins standing on shoulders in disguise. In Shadowrun they take the forms of Mr. Johnsons (powerful individuals working at the behest of a megacorp). In L5R, probably a daimyo or regional governor would work for this position. In Vampire it should be a prince or primogen. In Rogue trader it can be a powerful space marine captain, a dark eldar Wytch lady, really the possibilities are endless. The Patron as the true villain also can work, but you really have to watch yourself. First sign of provable skulduggery, and your plot is proper fucked.
The true villain- Don't take this role lightly. Your true villain is the person behind most of the pain, anguish, severed limbs the pc's have had to endure. They have a really horrible plan in mind, something that will ruin thousands if not millions of lives. Think big and you'll have a lot of places to go. Think too small and the pc's will solve the problem really fast. The bigger she is, the slower the dance should be before the pc's are in a position to fight her. Drop hints, make the legend as big, or bigger than it needs to be. If your true villain is subtle, make sure he or she is either perceived as a friend (making the betrayal that much worse), or make sure that the pc's are the only ones who see the shaping of the evil plan. If you dance the dance right, the pc's will have a great epic showdown.
The thorn- This is my favorite character type to throw into a game. Its an enemy who is actually a friend. Someone who appears to be an ongoing thorn in the pc's side, but is actually a hero, doing their best to stay alive. They plan conflict with the party as a way to train them, to make them stronger. It should be revealed eventually that they are an ally, and after that, you should definitely off them in a horrible way, making the discovery a relief, and the pain of loss that much greater. Think Snape from Harry Potter, and you're on the right track.
The information Broker- This is someone the pc's will go to for vital information- they will pay for it, out the nose. Whether the info is good or not is up to you, what matters is, make the pc's jump through hoops to get the info from this individual, either by trading away vital resources, or performing horrible tasks for the broker. Remember to keep this character swathed in the shadows as much as possible. You can even have this individual working for the Thorn, or the True villain if need be. Networking as many interconnections as possible makes redundancies for giving info and exploring untraveled plot trees, which actually help in gaming.
Henchman- These are the bulk of the threats the pc's will face. They can take many forms, guards, kobolds, orcs, hordes of hormagaunts, undead, minor samurai from an enemy clan, ghouls. They should have purpose, and you should vary them as much as possible, mixing them up to create different threats. If your henchman are cookie cutter minions, your players will get good at fighting them, and get bored. As the pc's hunt down lieutenants of the true villain, change who they are fighting. Make some ranged, some heavy, some average, some hidden, some obviously out in the open. Also remember that because of math, in many systems, the henchman will have a better chance of killing pc's than the true villain. I've seen five guards maul the pc's by sheer weight of numbers, and i've seen pc's kill a huge ending bad guy who was armed with claws and a flaming corpse cannon in two rounds of combat... single man tear (learn, move on). I'm kidding about his equipment, if I recall he fought primarily with harsh language.
The arcanist- This is a magic user, psychic, thaumaturgist, etc. etc. These character types should guard their secrets jealously. They should always be a source of occult information, and they should be able to accomplish things the pc's wouldn't else wise be able to perform. They should toy with the pc's as much as possible. They should use magic or psychics that the pc's haven't seen yet (this may force you to make up something not in the books *gasp*). It should be cool, and something the pc's will want to learn, or utilize. This character can also fall under the patron or info broker. The arcanist should have toys, but shouldn't be assailable...yet.
Commoners- These are people on the street, people in bars, average citizens who spend their days gossiping and passing out in their cups. They have general information usually. If a pc asks someone along the road what they've seen, they should have something for the pc. Remember to build that into your campaign, a mix of bad information and good information. Commoners are mostly trying to get by, they may ask for help, or they may offer succor to the party (succor is food and comfort etc, etc.). Reward the pc's for dealing with commoners, allow it to spread the myth of the adventuring party, who saved the daughter of lord Ducaine and brought the evil bandit king to heel. Commoners can breed like rabbits, so making family connections in other towns can be a funny way of letting the pc's feel good about their accomplishments.
The good soul- this is an NPC who is honestly good. They take the forms of clerics, doctors, kind orphanage wardens (it doesn't happen often, but it can), the kindly knight on the road. These are people who prove that there is good in the world. It is important, especially in dark toned games, to find those who are trying to assist the world, to make it a brighter place, to save humanity. In harsher games, its moments of kindness and levity that help the pc's know what they fight for. Some games will not have The good Soul in them. Vampire for instance, doesn't usually have a straight up good person, unless they are a mortal who the vampires encounter. Usually the good soul will have other aspects overlayed on their person. The sheriff of the city trying his best to keep the place from erupting into civil war.
The Sheriff- See what I did there? I dovetailed. Its when you do a thing to go into another thing....I'll explain when you're older. This character represents local law enforcement. Ninety percent of the time, the pc's will do something illegal and come to blows with the law. The Sheriff should be someone that the pc's can't steamroll, or why wouldn't they be in charge of the city/town. The Sheriff can be either good or bad, depending on what is needed in that moment. The Sheriff can be the tool of a great good, or great evil also, doing what they are commanded to do. If the Sheriff is generally a good person, the pc's should be able to reason with her. If they are bad, well...I hope you kept a lock picking kit in your sock drawer, and your sock drawer in your underwear, cause its time for a prison break. Sheriff's might take on the roll of patron for a few games, hiring the party to go route out a nest of evil shovelhead vamps, or to destroy a Rokkit ship of ork's just starting a Waaaaaggggh (waaagh's are great, so long as you aren't on the receiving end of them).
The Assassin- This is something mid to late game. The true villain knows that the pc's are a threat and they send someone to kill them in the open, or in their sleep. Pay attention to your players. If you know someone is dissatisfied with their character, they are the one the Assassin is going to target. Make sure the player is ok with their pc's auto death. Don't tell the other players if you're going this route. It makes for a huge wake up call, especially if the pc's have been waltzing through the adventure with little to no difficulty. Even if you don't go this route, the assassin should almost kill a pc, like make it as close as possible, or if the dice are in the assassins favor, do kill a pc. It depends on who your players are. I am a huge advocate of lying on dice rolls when necessary if it feels like the pc's are getting mumped to death, or are doing way too well. DO NOT USE THIS AS A PUNISHMENT THOUGH. Don't lie on every dice roll, it becomes a really bad habit.
The Warlord- This is usually a local general or military commander who is used to generate combat based plot. They can be an enemy, or someone the players have to deal with regularly. A warlord should always be more powerful than the pc's (within reason), and should be something to be feared, and respected. If you are running out of ideas and need a breather to plan a few game sessions. Drop a war on the players. Game sessions will be stealth, combat, riches, negotiation for a bit while you gather your plans and decide where to send the pc's next.
The shadow of the past- This is a character from a pc's past. They can be a family member long thought dead, they can be an old teacher, they can be a childhood best friend. They should show up at a dramatic moment. These npc's can be used to give the pc's information about a great destiny, or about an encroaching threat, or they can seek assistance when needed. They should evoke emotion and memory, and the pc's should never quite be able to trust this individual, because, why are they here now, right after we defeated Lord Highbane Mc hashtag Necromancyfunsorrynotsorry and stole his book of shadowy secret seven herbs of death magic? And wasn't my father supposed to be dead? Wasn't that mole on his other nostril?
The Merchant- These are npc's who sell stuff. It is important to remember not to give them too much stuff. Also, protect your merchants, players will always try to steal from them, always. Merchants can be a good source of information too. Every interaction with an NPC should be a possibility of learning more. DO NOT MAKE A MERCHANT A PUSHOVER.
Agent of chaos and comedy- This NPC is to bring moments of levity. They can be the jester in court, the malkavian on the street, the drunken dwarf who just came from a demilitarized zone and he really has a lot of jokes to get off his chest and he has a huge crush on an elf who won't give him the light of day, but he knows if he talks about the size of her spellbook, she'll be receptive to his charms or lack thereof. Sometimes its a rival pirate captain who loves life and wenching. These characters should introduce moments of antics and comedy. Sometimes a pc will fill this role more than anything you can come up with (if you're really lucky and have a Sean in your group). Sometimes a break is necessary from all the killing and drama. Keep track and act accordingly.
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