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I have a succubus as a villain and she needs a lair. It is a world where a succubus right out of the book is a powerful foe for anyone concerned and is a creature of myth and terror. I am yet to consider a cool lair but a brothel is ruled out (too cliche) and so is a noble residence (doesn't work in the current setting dynamics).
So what would be an awesome lair/adventure setting for a succubus, urban, rural or local wilderness?
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I have a succubus as a villain and she needs a lair. It is a world where a succubus right out of the book is a powerful foe for anyone concerned and is a creature of myth and terror. I am yet to consider a cool lair but a brothel is ruled out (too cliche) and so is a noble residence (doesn't work in the current setting dynamics).
So what would be an awesome lair/adventure setting for a succubus, urban, rural or local wilderness?
Working as an agent workin against the Cheliaxian government. A lair of demons and the appropriate lackeys thereof in the ruins of northern Westcrown would be a great place. The hellknights and the Thrice Dammed House of Thrune would likely pay you handsomely for her head as well, and would make for a really interesting plot hook. To see if the players want to work with one evil faction to destroy another, depending on how it plays out it could be a really neat RP opportunity if that is the kind of game you are running.
Consort to a marauding warlord, the local Genghis or Attila, who is the beneficiary of her Profane Gift. Towns are sacked and plundered for her favor. No refined luxuries, but spit-cooked meat and animal furs offer their own rugged pleasures.
In charge of a Workhouse.for the deserving poor? Charm the inhabitants, let the able bodied work for their supper in the community.Eyes and ears everywhere.
Perhaps turning it in to a brothel?
At the head of a crusade killing and assuming the identity of the commanding paladin as well bending his officers to her will. The holy crusade has taken a strange turn burning small villages down trying to expunge devil heretics.
I think a succubus could be exceedingly successful running an opium den--lots of corruption and vice, and if she sucked out anyone's life force, she could just blame it on an OD, as compared to a brothel where you're going to have some trouble explaining mysterious disappearances or equally mysterious deaths. Yes, sometimes heart attacks can happen during sex, but not usually, and it's bad for business.
An opium addict taking too much? Happens pretty often, and if the succubus wants a little sex, she can probably do that too and no one's going to think it odd that the pretty hostess occasionally shags a customer. And if anyone sees through your act and denounces you as a demoness, you can just say they're stoned before arranging an accident for them.
Fashion Mogul, she could run a clothing mercantile operation that is attempting to change the culture morays of the region.
She could be running an adoption agency handing out her tiefling and half-fiend offspring into select families granting her vast political power. The operation is mostly legit.
Give a succubus levels of master spy. I think you can see where this is going. :D
As has been mentioned, the Succubi is an agent of subtle corruption. The only time your PCs should be going sword vs claw with the Succubi is if something goes horribly wrong with Her(It?) Plan and everything has turned to s#++.
The shyly amorous librarian, the haughty and domineering Orphan Matron, the friendly Mayor, all of these work, and to really throw the PCs for a loop, make Her(It?) take a Male form. PCs never seem to be able to wrap their heads around that particular trick. Succubi thrive on the corruption of fleshy passions as well as the warping of honest pleasures into cruel or sadistic perversions. It is their nectare, their reason to exist, their most exquisite pleasure and darkest joy to twist a Mortal's soul in such a fashion that the Mortal(s) cannot live without this new, darker theme in their life, but can also remember what they once had, as well.
A Succubi in such a Campaign would be best served as being a very much 'behind the scenes' Villain, such as the Noblewoman famous for her modern (for the era, at least) attitude to the way the world works and her tireless championing of the under-class, although she would likely in turn, through at least two different levels of agents, likely be the one controlling the social strata that keeps the 'common man' down to begin with, either via dark gifts from the Abyss itself or more earthly pleasures. After all, once a Succubi has her way with you, and in the right way, as they are Telepathic and can know all your darkest desires, nothing on this side of the Material Plane can compare.
She doesn't even have to live in a Noble's mansion. Perhaps the Succubi has become the lover of a very important Nobleman, perhaps even someone in line for the throne, and as I mentioned above, taken a male form to accomodate this Princeling (or Princess!) desires, in every way. Pcs might actually work for the Succubi for several levels, not quite realising they are being manipulated to not only draw attention away from the Succubi by spearheading Her(It?)'s campaign to 'bring relief and substance' into the Common Folk's life and thus confuse anyone who might be clued into her Abyssal nature, but be set-up themselves to be the patsies for future events if they're not careful.
Alternatively, the humble Witch who lives on the outskirts of town could have a reputation for scandal with the locals, known to sample from both sides of the fence, as it were, in exchange for charms that always work 100% effectively. In truth, it's the Succubi with a flock of Imps following her every desire and the Master Craftsman feat, able to turn simple jewellery into creations that can ensorcerl or compell service, all for the price of a Mortal's soul upon death, something that would make her wealthy beyond measure back in the Abyss, and perhaps this 'Witch' is being investigated subtly not just by the PCs, but by the real 'Witches' whom do not know of this 'Sister in the Arts' and are quite keen to figure out how all these minor trinkets that stink of the Lower Planes are popping up all over the place and bringing misfortune and suffering into the lives of all who oppose the wearers.
Case in point.
Dark Mistress from these very boards.
Indeed, the best way to find out where the "Cool Succubi" hang out is to ask one. ;D
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Works for a slave-merchant. The chattel are very receptive to her persuasions, and she never leaves marks when she disciplines them (generally with charm spells).
Unknown to her 'boss,' who doesn't even know her true gender, let alone her true form and race, the quiet young 'salesman' and procurer of fine flesh has a dozen children working quietly behind the scenes, all tieflings, with the rare half-fiend favored child. She has mastered the technique of possession, and when she possesses a mortal male, any children he sires are touched by her fiendish taint, and are born as tieflings. When she, in her male form, sires a child directly, the child is a half-fiend. (The same would happen if she chose to bear a child herself, in her true form, but that's more effort than she's willing to put into this operation, and she doesn't bottom for mortals in any event.) Her 'children' continue growing, expanding her powerbase, while her 'boss' remains hopelessly addicted to a combination of charm spells and will-sapping drugs, content to let his 'factor' run the business...
RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32, 2010 Top 8
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Hmm, another profession I thought of looking over the 'stock' succubus.
Finishing school for girls or boys. We've seen something akin to this in Dave Gross's AP fiction (the Scion's Academy). With the high Diplomacy and Sense Motive skills, she could be a teacher or a headmaster. Following the other examples, she can be using the charm/suggestion/dominate on the other members of the faculty, altering their class plans to advance her agenda. Her class plans are perfectly innocent, as a back up plan, "Why I had no idea the Headmistress was a demon worshiper. Are you sure?"
She saves her profane gift not for a teacher, but for a custodian, with a lust for the kids. This allows her to indulge in her own nature (suggest to the guy to go with kid a, suggest to kid a that it's not creepy to be touched there) as well as gives her a hired hand (that +4 from the profane gift might be to dexterity, making him more stealthy to follow the kids. If his charisma is 6 or 7, then revoking the gift will likely put him in a coma with wisdom drain) While all the students are being corrupted by the classes, only the really evil ones get to see her true form/get clued in.
Long term goals? Well in a generation, two at most, these kids will be nobles, adventurers, merchants of their own, and can spread the chaos everywhere. Better still, their kids will likely already be initiated into the cult before they get to the school.
Hey, a succubus is an immortal being with an 18 intelligence. Of course her plans can take time. If her own lusts get too great, she teleports 3 towns over and raids a brothel.
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Hmm, another profession I thought of looking over the 'stock' succubus.
Finishing school for girls or boys. We've seen something akin to this in Dave Gross's AP fiction (the Scion's Academy). With the high Diplomacy and Sense Motive skills, she could be a teacher or a headmaster. Following the other examples, she can be using the charm/suggestion/dominate on the other members of the faculty, altering their class plans to advance her agenda. Her class plans are perfectly innocent, as a back up plan, "Why I had no idea the Headmistress was a demon worshiper. Are you sure?"
She saves her profane gift not for a teacher, but for a custodian, with a lust for the kids. This allows her to indulge in her own nature (suggest to the guy to go with kid a, suggest to kid a that it's not creepy to be touched there) as well as gives her a hired hand (that +4 from the profane gift might be to dexterity, making him more stealthy to follow the kids. If his charisma is 6 or 7, then revoking the gift will likely put him in a coma with wisdom drain) While all the students are being corrupted by the classes, only the really evil ones get to see her true form/get clued in.
Long term goals? Well in a generation, two at most, these kids will be nobles, adventurers, merchants of their own, and can spread the chaos everywhere. Better still, their kids will likely already be initiated into the cult before they get to the school.
Hey, a succubus is an immortal being with an 18 intelligence. Of course her plans can take time. If her own lusts get too great, she teleports 3 towns over and raids a brothel.
That's just creepy...
Coed Dorm. Bam.
This thread equally makes me wonder where the uncool succubi hang out...
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RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32, 2010 Top 8
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Forgot to mention the custodian (besides making the players think of Nightmare on Elm Street) is a multipurpose henchthrall.
She can use him to spy on the PCs (again high stealth) or to throw them off the trail. (Party captures him, revoking her gift is likely to make him comatose. Party kills him, she suggests the kids come forward with stories of abuse. "That's why they were acting strange. Such trauma!") Assuming he's been 'creepy guy' before she got there, making him a rogue 2 or 3 would be justifiable, and maybe allow him to last a round. If she wants to make him to look like the BBEG, you send him with a summoned Babau demon He also could dispose of bodies of teachers who made their will saves. (The demon's disguise skill would help here too. Kill the teacher, then spend a couple of weeks pretending to be him, then 'retire')
Real twisted moment... Low level party kills the custodian, saves the party. The 'Headmistress', grateful for their work, offers any of the adventurers future kids free tuition at the school
Note: Because of a couple of my players, I could never do this at home.
Edit: It works even better if they catch the 'Nightmare on Elm Street' similarities. They kill 'freddie' then compliment they're problem solving skills and tease you for ripping off a film. You nod and smile.
This thread equally makes me wonder where the uncool succubi hang out...
The uncool succibi run a brothel, escort service, and slave market for those of refined passions and discriminating tastes.
Unfortunately, those who make their saving throws just think that the lady who runs the pet shop is kind of creepy with the way she goes on about her "beautiful ducklings" and "fiesty little gerbils."
Make the succubus a caravan mistress.
Doesn't sound normal, does it? But think about it. A merchant who wanders the roads from city to city can spread a lot of trouble easily. She can drain a level or two in one town and be on the road again before anyone notices. She could charm or seduce other merchants, making a network that spreads across the land. Those merchants all shower her with gifts, each thinking she's the greatest thing since sliced bread. Maybe the merchants she meets know of one another and vie for her attention, which she of course nurtures until the merchants are at each other's throats. The chaos of such a war would of course make her master happy, and she gets to collect the souls of those poor saps involved. Sure, this is usually more of a glabrezu's thing, but hey, those dog-headed freaks are pathetically inept at true corruption, aren't they? Also, with enough contacts, the succubus could come to control key commodities in the market and leverage herself into a position of power within the nation--head of a merchant's guild at least, if not into a position such as the king's treasurer. From there, the king himself is only a short step away....
I would let them (if there are multiple) live alone in a castle, as 3 your virgins aged between 18 and 20. Like in Monty Python, then when they think "oh cool, a funny Monthy Python part" you have them in your trap.
~evil GM laughter~ Such wonderfully wicked ideas! Bookmarked for later!!!
I have a succubus as a villain and she needs a lair. It is a world where a succubus right out of the book is a powerful foe for anyone concerned and is a creature of myth and terror. I am yet to consider a cool lair but a brothel is ruled out (too cliche) and so is a noble residence (doesn't work in the current setting dynamics).
So what would be an awesome lair/adventure setting for a succubus, urban, rural or local wilderness?
Dear Endowed One,
You are making a very common mistake here, and overlooking the fact that Succubi are by definition so inherently cool that wherever they hang out, is inherently cool by their choosing to grace it with their presence.However, if you are looking for quaint, quirky, or eccentric locations, Succubi that I have known have frequented:
Hoping that this advice has been useful to you.
Yours,
Ask A Succubus.
I would let them (if there are multiple) live alone in a castle, as 3 your virgins aged between 18 and 20. Like in Monty Python, then when they think "oh cool, a funny Monthy Python part" you have them in your trap.
You're closer to folklore than you think.
In the first version of the legend I read, the castle filled with sexy ladies seeking to tempt Galahad was in fact filled with demonesses who jumped off the battlements and flew off on bat wings once he'd turned them down too many times.
In the party...+1 to this. As a beneficial NPC, the succubus can slowly take over the entire party.. and throw them away when they're no longer useful.
I can say from experience that the Succubus's Profane Gift is a great thing to throw into a situation like this.
As for the original question--as mentioned many times, succubi are often subtle and they change shape--the could really be ANYWHERE. Preferably one where they can meet lots of people to corrupt, today or a few years down the line. Maybe in a guild, tavern, or shop. If she is very clever she shouldn't be necessarily the leader (or at least not the person everyone thinks is the leader) but perhaps, say, the guildmaster's "invaluable assistant" etc.
Theatres. Acting is a great cover for a variety of activities as it involves moving around a lot (which is why ninjas of history used to pretend to be actors) and access to nobles and commoners alike.
In DnD Land, the Wizard's Guild is also a great spot. I mean, where better to hide than in an environment where you actually have a good excuse to have anti-divination spells cast on you, secretive and strange habits, magical powers, and no visible means of support.
why does it need to be a succubus? how about an incubus with master spy levels?
Churches.
RPG Superstar 2011 Top 32
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This is not quite a succubus, and not quite evil, either, but kinda sorta related:
I ran a high level game, where one of the characters was a Paladin of Iomedae. Also, she was a tiefling, the grand-daughter of a certain succubus from a certain Adventure Path, who was rescued at a young age by an adventuring Cleric of Iomedae, who put her in a girl's orphanage, where most of the girls ended up becoming clerics or crusaders.
Weeeell... turns out the girl learned a bit too much from her sire, and by the time she became a full fledged crusader she pretty much had the entire pack of orphans as her harem, and had a good deal of influence over the clergy of Iomedae in that region.
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This is not quite a succubus, and not quite evil, either, but kinda sorta related:
I ran a high level game, where one of the characters was a Paladin of Iomedae. Also, she was a tiefling, the grand-daughter of a certain succubus from a certain Adventure Path, who was rescued at a young age by an adventuring Cleric of Iomedae, who put her in a girl's orphanage, where most of the girls ended up becoming clerics or crusaders.
Weeeell... turns out the girl learned a bit too much from her sire, and by the time she became a full fledged crusader she pretty much had the entire pack of orphans as her harem, and had a good deal of influence over the clergy of Iomedae in that region.
Someone took Leadership, didn't they? ;)
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A local magistrate. She's a great 'hanging judge,' rumored to be able to sniff out lies, and famous for getting those who come before the bench to confess to their wrongdoings.
She appears as a stern iron-haired older woman, as befits her chosen vocation, and ends up arranging for those whose hearts she detects as containing the sorts of villainy she truly favors to be declared innocent (or, if the evidence is simply irrefutable, to be 'executed' in such a way that their deaths can be faked, and themselves shuffled off to work her will in other communities). The innocent may be manipulated into confessing, or 'proof' of their villainy be uncovered by the town militia (most of whom are unaware of anything unusual about the Judge, but one or two of which are willing to plant evidence for her, although even they believe that they are serving the greater good, and that she's just bringing justice to those scoundrels who would have evaded it!).
Through her machinations, over a decade or more, she's become the behind-the-scenes mastermind of all local organized crime, using the hoodlums she's saved from justice to infiltrate all layers of society, and using her position as magistrate to pardon her favorites, frame anyone who interferes with her operation, and, occasionally, execute (perfectly legally) someone who attempts to screw her over.
The example of 'law' that she sets has twisted the community, and many young townsfolk have grown up knowing no other way, with no understanding of mercy, compassion or true justice. In a generation, the community has already slid towards both evil and chaos, eager to turn in their neighbors to the Hanging Judge, with anyone recognizing the true peril having long ago been found guilty of something horrible, and dealt with...
For years, the village priest attempted to stymie her agenda, and she allowed him these feeble protests, as he saw her 'justice' grow darker and suspected that some she declared innocent were not so pure of heart. His downfall was scandalous, and turned even his most ardent supporters against himself, his church and his god. Now his church has been repurposed, to a goddess of celebration that the locals lack the theological insight to recognize as Nocticula. One of her earliest 'recruits,' saved from the gallows, serves as a Cleric of that faith, and while never revealing the true name of she whom he serves, has an elaborate 'holy book' of lore that he scribes daily, with her help (she sometimes jots down ideas while presiding over cases of little import), many rites and observances and holy doctrines that seep into the soul of the people over years, hardening them against 'celebratory acts of obeisance' that would have shocked their senses a generation ago...
Boy I tell ya, too many people are starting to take my Avatar.
First "Darkmeer" and "Darkjoy," and now "K."
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery!
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But then you'd leave out the others:
Lilith changed hers.
So did James Keegan.
And Daigle
And Cosmo and Josh
And Tensor every few months
Don't forget that Mona betrayed Rel.
And they changed Sebastion's for him.
As for me,
Crosby said it best:
Almost cut my hair/
Happened just the other day
And I'll never cut mine.
The "daughter" of a local nobleman. She killed his daughter and took her place and is now slowly leading her "peers" down the road to ruin with sex, drugs, and other wickedness!
I've used a succubus as an attractive commoner. Her lair was a simple and clean peasant hut. She was dating almost the entire guard and nobody questioned when a single guard simply stopped showing up. She was the mastermind for years in a suburb of a major city.
In the end the entire guard was slaughtered because one of them started 'getting religion'.
mwahaha.
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Fortune Teller. Simply everyone comes to her, and she peers into their minds with detect thoughts and shows off her powers of insight. She tells them a combination of what they want to hear, and what she wants them to do, of how old Miller Santi is plotting against them and the reason why their cattle were sick last season was because he slipped something into the grain...
The community ends up tearing itself apart, as those who come to her for advice find that anything they've even remotely suspected about their neighbors (so long as it's negative and likely to incite strife) is totally true. And sometimes, she'll whisper other secrets, plundered from her customers, that are actually true, allowing some of her patrons to sample the delights of blackmailing their fellow townsfolk, tasting the fruits of corruption for themselves.
Sometimes she'll arrange for other unpleasant bits of information to spread, such as that the young man/woman that you are interested is interested in you as well, but that only their cruel father stands in the way of your love. But I forsee that the dark cloud of tragedy would have a silver lining. If some misfortune were descend upon him, he/she would fall into your arms... What? You killed him, and they didn't fall into your arms? They must be bespelled, perhaps even haunted by the cruel father's grip, unwilling to allow freedom even beyond the grave. Quick, slip this into their drink, to weaken and exorcise the spirit. You must mortify the flesh, to drive the evil out. I'm *sure* you will be amply rewarded!
Gee, constable, I can't imagine why the young fool murdered Cooper Barstow, poisoned and beat his daughter to death, and then killed himself afterwards... Why do such terrible things occur? A mystery for the ages!
I see a dark cloud about you, might I read your fortune?
Golarion's Moon. I'm not kidding, there are apparently Moon Succubi....seriously.
Fine...don't believe me.
Fear the Moon!
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Case in point.
Dark Mistress from these very boards.
Indeed, the best way to find out where the "Cool Succubi" hang out is to ask one. ;D
I thought I heard a pray to me.
As to the OP, I think it totally depends on where the campaign setting is and what her goals are. I don't think a succubus would honestly care, but would pick what ever lair that would be best for accomplishing her goals, what ever they are. There was several good suggestions on this thread already.
Interesting thread to read.
At my place... because they all love the smokin' hot Dwarven Beard Dance!
Ahh! My eyes! Must use bleach!
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I know the OP said that a brothel was too cliche... but...
In the begininng of my current campaign I had an aspect of Malcanthet and a group of succubi run a Hell themed brothel in Chelax where they posed as women dressed as "fallen angels." With such an obvious tie in to the local culture, the PC's didn't even think twice about whether the "working girls" were actually outsiders until the Aspect KO'd the paladin in a surprise round/1st round of combat.
The resulting combat in a multistory brothel with succubi dressed like erinyes is still talked about.