Mercenary Company Campaign: Big Bad Evil Folks Concepts & Ideas

Players, get out please…

So I’ve been thinking about this as a sandbox game, and as such I think it’s best that I come up with several big baddies of various challenge ratings so that no matter what direction they choose to go off in I can present them with dilemmas, choices, and challenging situations.

I’m going to list out a few ideas I have, which will then be fleshed out in their own articles detailing the respective villain using the universal NPC template, along with their lieutenants and organization.

Balaur, Beast of War

(See Legendary Dragons by Jetpack7)

Balaur is a great dragon, saved from near death by the duergar clans of the Sunless Horde. Now he is a great weapon for their combined armies, but it is unclear if they command him or he controls them. The clan chiefs include the great duegar chief Armgrim Ragespite (combine blackguard and warlord MPMM stat blocks). Bendek Silentcleaver, Nisglia Battlestriker are the other powerful chieftains.

Matron Maelora of House Gullion

(See Rise of the Drow from AAW Games)

Matron Maelora rules Holoth, the City of Spiders, with fear and intrigue. She expertly controls an already murderous upper class of evil Drow, controlling and directing their energy now towards expansion both in the Underworld and on the surface.

Gar Shatterkeel

(See Princes of the Apocalypse from WOTC)

The various prophets of elemental evil from Princes of the Apocalypse lend themselves to being ripped out and used in other ways really well. The added benefit of using Gar and his faction is that I can use material from the Sharkadia issue of Arcadia. So he once again leads a group or network of cultists worshiping forces of elemental evil. 

Jarl Godag of the Njomand Clan

The jarl of a clan of frost giants dwelling in icy holds upon the Plane of Ice. Jarl Godag's reavers and frost-blessed thralls sail forth through various portals to raid the many worlds. They retreat to their holds for the winters of these planes, feasting upon the spoils that they gathered during the raiding season. Jarl Godag harbours ambitions of seizing footholds on these many worlds to establish permanent outposts and bases of operations, bringing slaughter and destruction to more upon the material plane.

Kossedi the Silent

Dao ruler of Onyxvault, a settlement on the Plane of Earth. Her forces capture mortals from across the material plane to work in the endless dark mines of the infinite elemental plane and transport the gems and riches extracted to markets in the City of Brass and beyond.

She Who Sees Beyond (The White Necromancer) 

This is a sandbox campaign, so I can’t be disappointed if the players completely avoid this plot hook, but if I’m running a Black Company inspired game then I may as well lean in, right? The White Necromancer is an essentially immortal spellcaster, who has raised an army of both mortals and undead, including powerful champions who act as her generals. She seeks to control the lands of the faltering Imperium, acting as an outside contender. Her true nature is unknown. The company might be her enemy, or might find itself in her service.

Tremocephalid

An elder brain, bringing in a colony of mind flayers as a plot device, I think this one is pretty cool. They can easily be brought in as raiders on the Material Plane, or tossed into the Astral Sea or other scenarios.

Ziqed Flamebiter

An Efreeti lord who divides his time between his luxurious apartment in the City of Brass and his own citadel in a coterminus zone in a volcano's caldera between the material plane and the Plane of Fire. Ziqed is slowly gathering allies including fire giants dwelling upon the plane of fire, along with salamanders and other creatures. He plans to make a play for power both in the City of Brass to advance his position and gain greater favor with the Sultan. His scheme to do this is by taking control of the great cities of the Southern Deserts of the material plane, placing his genasi children and bound warlocks upon the thrones as Emirs and Pharaohs.