How do you usually come up with your antagonists?

[cydare]

I love having POV characters who are the antagonists for others! It's rare that any person thinks of themselves as evil, or in the wrong. I've rarely been overly attached to antagonists who are pure evil villains, or who I can't understand in terms of motivation and backstory. Seeing into their mind would bring me closer.

 

[Miskatonic]

I love having POV characters who are the antagonists for others! It's rare that any person thinks of themselves as evil, or in the wrong. I've rarely been overly attached to antagonists who are pure evil villains, or who I can't understand in terms of motivation and backstory. Seeing into their mind would bring me closer.

I agree. Getting inside the mind of powerful people that are driven by ambition is fun.

I have a newly crowned king that's been greatly influenced by the stories he heard as a kid about a previous ruler from centuries past that was legendary for keeping another nation from invading and taking over his homeland. So kind of a folk hero that you would see statues of, and hear songs about his exploits, most likely exaggerated for greater effect. Anyhow, the new doesn't believe he's getting the respect he deserves as ruler and there are rumors that the southern part of the kingdom is talking about creating its own nation and separating from the main kingdom. He sees this as an opportunity to become a hero like the one he idolizes so much. So he eventually ends up declaring war and calling the southern nobles traitors, even though there is conflicting information on what the southern nobles really want to do. So needless to say he may cause a great catastrophe though he thinks his cause is righteous. The more the conflict escalates the more zealous and paranoid he becomes.

I like working with the notion of how a lot of leaders, whether political or military, usually have some past influence that really made an impression on them, for good or ill, and that this can have a direct effect on their own choices. Take for example Hitler with his fascination of the ubermensch concept created by Nietzsche.