Some help for a campaign villain I'm making

[darthspader]

So I'm running a campaign and have need of a minor final villain. I have decided to use an old character of mine as the bad guy. What I need is ... a few pointers on some shenanigans he can orchestrate to harass the group and establish himself. Since I'm pretty sure my group may see and read this thread I may or may not use suggestions and will only provide basic info already known to the group.

Zayues (zay-ooze) is a half orc arcanist specializing in Necromancy. (Using his class feats to gain wizard specialist school abilities) he is flamboyant, loud and quite possibly insane. He is convinced that he is a god trapped in mortal form, (he's not sure which one so he thinks it's himself) as such he often refers to himself in 3rd person. He is undertaking a mission to rebuild the temple of zayues and thus insists on telling everyone he knows to "spread the word of zayues" and usually hands them a scrap of handscribbled paper containing gibberish or whatever he thinks of at the time, which he calls "the tennents of zayues". Usually the only mainstays on such documents are "fear zayues, spread the word, and build a temple" along with whatever other random nonsense or base need he thinks of (he's Been known to include "fetch me a sammich" and "wipe the arse of zayues' steed) He's also rather fond of using his arcane mark on those he encounters. Bestowing "the mark of zayues" on them. (Usually on the forehead or face) He also does this to defeated enemies, finished wine bottles and random objects he passes. At the moment he is of low to medium level, and just come from the far north, what he believes to be one of 2 survivors of an ill fated mission to the north. He's supplanted himself into a local bandit group as a shaman, and has most of the bandits kind of freaked out. He's just recently learned how to create more kinds of undead and is enjoying his experiments. Often just creating them, giving them a command and then loosing them on the world.

So: any suggestions on encounters I can throw to the group? I have a few ideas but always value more input.

Thanks!

[Isonaroc]

Roughly what level is the party?

[darthspader]

Isonaroc wrote:

Roughly what level is the party?

Right now they are second level, but should advance quickly.

[darthspader]

So more info:
Group is 2nd lvl but as said will advance fast.
They have already encountered some random monsters bearing the mark
3 of the group were fellow players when I used the character and are familiar with his "style"

[Dave Justus]

I would caution against using a previous character as a bad guy. It makes it easy to get too attached to your bad guy, and even if you don't do anything wrong, players can think you are 'cheating' for your character. Using what they think is an old character at first, but when they find out more just bears a few similarities is something you could do at this point still though, and might be fun when they think they are facing one thing (due to previous games player knowledge) but are actually facing something entirely different.

Beyond that, he seems too crazy and random to end up feeling like much of a real threat beyond just a rabid dog that needs to be put down.

All that being said things he might do that the party would notice or be against them directly

1) wandering uncontrolled undead (obvious)
2) bandits stealing building supplies for the temple
3) kidnapping for labor (perhaps making the victims undead) to build his temple
4) Assuming the PCs have thwarted a scheme at some point, but he doesn't want a direct confrontation attacking places they have stayed, people that have helped them.
5) Directed attacks against the party using either bandit or undead (or both).

[Mark Hoover 330]

Why not make it more personal for the PCs? What are their characters, their backstories? Perhaps engineer things towards something that would make them sit up and take notice.

For example if there is any sort of crafter in the group, someone that focuses on making things in their spare time, think of the following:

1. local suppliers of (insert material used by PC's Craft/Profession) are raising prices to offset recent thefts
2. a favored co-worker/apprentice/mentor has disappeared
3. the PC's items are usually of high/Masterwork quality; the crafter's former clients are being targeted for theft or murder

Now beyond that, there are more obvious, though more generic tricks Zayues can pull:

1. multiple graves in the local cemetery found open/empty overnight
2. local animal/fey population becoming more aggressive as the wilds begin filling with the restless dead
3. portents of some Profane malevolence on the rise, such as cows' milk drying up or curdling (Putrefy Food and Drink), sightings of Raven Swarms (lots of corpses in the area), or a blight on local flora (any number of Necromancy or Evil Druid spells)

Finally, unless this guy is supposed to be kind of a silly villain, I say you really play up the Mark of Zayues. Put the mark in plain sight on, say, a door frame. Inside the party finds a slavering ghoul feasting on a family of innocents. "My lord Zayues commanded me: sup upon the living for only HE is deserving of the dead!" Other ominous places to find the mark:

1. over morgues, cemeteries, mausoleums, etc.
2. on the entry to an abattoir, butcher's shop or maybe some other bloody establishment
3. on the body of someone of importance, especially if the PCs suspect the person of being in league with Zaues

The last thing I'll leave you with is this: when all else fails, look at the spells/abilities of your villain. Zaues is what, a mid level Arcanist? He's got Sorcerer/Wizard spells up to, say, about level 3? Just because he's got a focus on Necromancy doesn't mean he CAN'T cast other spells.

Explore the implications of Hallucinatory Terrain, Minor Image or even Invisibility. Heck, just look at his Cantrips!

I once had a whole campaign start out with a bar fight, started by the quartet of mites hidden around the outskirts of the common room. Imagine the shenanigans that four mites using Prestidigitation and their Doom ability can inflict! The evil pests made the beer look and taste like blood; the food appeared moldy; some drinks floated around and poured on people. Doom is a fear effect so 2 of the NPCs suddenly reacted like they were scared out of their wits. It led to a very interesting first encounter.

[Mark Hoover 330]

Ok, I'm probably overthinking this since this guy is a "minor" villain, but here goes:

The Bell and Collar:

The village of Peelynstadt may be small but it is quite noteworthy to nobles in the region for its foundry, or more specifically the bells crafted there. Master Gruebyn Stowe, the chief bell maker has attended the sounding of every creation of the foundry for 20 years, from the tiniest chimes to the greatest steeple gongs. So it is why the PCs find themselves in Tollyn Square on the morning of a Foundry Day at Peelynstadt, there to hear the newest tone and celebrate with a festival!

Unfortunately at the appointed hour Master Stowe is a no-show. The PCs are hired to investigate. They find that the old master's second, Heinrykht, conspired with a group of bandits who kidnapped Gruebyn the night before and used magic to speed their escape. The insidious Heinrykht is found to have a strange mark upon him which is also found on a number of skeletons defending him.

The trail and ensuing encounters should take days for the PCs to catch up to their quarry. When at last they get to the bandit lair, they find the detritus of the master's work: a broken mold, smelting oven, and so on. If it were my game they'd have the chance to save Master Stowe's life and gain info from him, but otherwise they need to figure out the following: Gruebyn was forced to craft a singular bell of exacting specifications. The iron was mixed with molten bone before it was poured into the mold, then its cooling was aided by magic to speed it along. The device was coated in a substance that contained, among other things, the "tears of the dead" according to one of the people holding Stowe captive. Finally the iron was silvered and bone tools were used to etch the soft outer metal with weird arcane symbols.

This is part one of a 2 part Wondrous Item called the Harness of the Dead. The bell is attuned to up to 4 collars. Use of the gong upon these collars permits the bearer to command powerful, sentient undead (as per the Command Undead spell).

Upon returning to the village the PCs also learn that either another villain of theirs or some notable bad guy in the region had their remains stolen. Also a tannery specializing in exotic skins was broken into; the same bandits are suspected.

Zayues is working to complete the Bell and Collar. Once done, he's going to animate a particularly powerful elite undead as his personal cohort, controlling them with the device. This will be "The Speaker of Zayues", his herald in the land and themselves a decent adversary for the PCs. The one thing the PCs will have going for them is that the reason for the magic item is because this second-in-command either doesn't appreciate being undead or chafes at Zayues' control.

I don't know what level to make this adventure, otherwise I'd suggest monsters for it. Suffice it to say though that these bare bones give you one avenue of plot for your PCs to explore. If you have questions/comments, let me know.

[darthspader]

Some pretty good ideas! I like the bell thing.. might have to tweak a little.

Last update: the group was attacked by a small horde of undead created By zayues.
2 skeletons (1 bloody) and 4 zombies (2 special variant) It did not go well. 2 party members died, 2 finished the fight k'o and the Druid lost his animal companion. The group is now in full retreat GTFO mode back to the nearest safe haven.
But this should bring zayues to the forefront as a threat in the area, as one of the zombies had a copy of "the tennents of zayues" and most bore the mark.