| neilcell |
Very interesting character, and one that I think is very compelling beyond just her obvious fan service. I agree with Rosgakori and mechaPoet that Nyctessa's character motivations are much more interesting and compelling.
I like to think that her evil is but a total lack of compassion brought about by a culture that views such sentiments as weakness. I envision Nyctessa as something of a dispassionate researcher. One that is emotionally and morally numb. While others in the iconic evil party may revel in the villainy, pain, and suffering they inflict, she has almost no response, being simply cold and calculating with an almost vacant or inquisitive look. To her, pain and suffering are merely data points in her experiments; she doesn't enjoy inflicting pain, but neither does she shy away. It is just part of existence. The best example I can use is Galen of Pergamon(Aelius Galenus or Claudius Galenus), but WITHOUT the Oath of Hippocrates and Roman Law forbidding certain practices.
Now I am going to engage in some pure speculation. Of all of the evil characters, she is the only one I see who could potentially be "redeemed". Maybe that is why I find her brand of evil more interesting. Her overriding goal is to bridge the gap between life and death or undeath. That nuance seems to me to imply that she has no desire to embrace undeath in the traditional sense. Her goal would be to achieve a "deathless" state similar to the concept in both "Book of Exalted Deeds" and the Elves in the Eberron Campaign Setting.
Now that I have opened up her motivation, I will throw out possible ways she could be turned from her Evil ways. Perhaps she comes into contact with a wise older arch-wizard who has knowledge she desires and takes her on as a professional co-worker, lab partner, peer research teammate, and co-developer. With his wisdom and the knowledge he readily shares, her eyes might be opened to perspectives that she had never considered. Another possibility could be that after taking a lover (say, elf, half-elf, or even an Azalanti human) she becomes pregnant with child and the experience of a life growing in her womb changes her outlook on life and death. Motherhood instincts are strong, and they could certainly break through the social conditioning of her upbringing such that she comes to value something other than her own existence.