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Okay, here’s my idea for an NPC villain—a reversal of the classic good demon hunter/paladin type. It’s for Palladium Fantasy, but could also work for any of the modern settings such as HU, BTS, or NB.

He’s a Van Helsing-like monster slayer who is also a religious fanatic and has supernatural powers. He hears the voice of god, and he sees demons everywhere, and he hunts them with brutal efficiency, along with any innocent bystanders that get in his way.

But the twist is he himself is unwittingly a Witch who had undergone the Pact of Union by an alien intelligence who needs a self-righteous pawn to eliminate the competition (other supernatural beings). The voice in his head directing him is the voice of the Alien Intelligence, which he never questions and never suspects he might be a pawn to the very type of evil he combats. The intelligence sometimes directs him towards serial-killing of ordinary people who are ‘sinners,’ or demons in disguise. In this respect he’s like the killer from Se7en.

Player characters will normally see such a character as an ally. His powers and experience would make him attractive, and his personal beliefs would just seem odd at first. If he sees the PCs as demons, he might end up hunting them.

He is very powerful and high-experienced Witch (does not have a Familiar), trained as an equivalent Demon Hunter/Slayer, Aberrant evil and crazy—convinced that he is a hero in a world of darkness. He typically works alone and in the shadows. He’s not really interested in converting others or forming cults or organizations. He has the best demon-hunting equipment, much of which he has devised himself.

Any other ideas for scenarios involving this villain, or suggestions for improvements?

well for earth settings mark hall has stated up yahweh the god of the abrhamic people
if you go to his site he has that available

Hall has him as a fairly powrful AI

you don't even need to have him be deluded

say 20 years ago his village was murdered by the supernatural

he was a relatively powerful and good warrior that prayed to his god for stgrenghth

his god ignored him and he decided he was forced to turn towards the AI for the power to avenge them

making a devil's bargain he knows he has damned himself for the greater good of mankind

twingle93 wrote:Any other ideas for scenarios involving this villain, or suggestions for improvements?

Great idea for a NPC!

I suggest making him an ally of the PCs and have the PCs come to trust him. The AI would surely want such powerful heroes such as the PCs to also do his bidding. Drop minor hints about the truth, but always have easy to swallow reasons to ignore such hints. Use him to make the PCs into pawns as well.

And then, it will all go badly...

Hmm...what does the JLA do when they realize that Batman has been spending the last decade as Jack the Ripper on his day off?

Good ideas, thank you very much.

This character isn't the bloodstained, mumbling-under-his-breath, dagger-wielding, backstabbing cultist. Ideally he should be mistaken for a hero.

He embodies these tropes:

Knight Templar

Lord Error Prone

Dark Messiah

church militant

I'd imagine this character would be more like the Eradicator Superman in the Death of Superman story. A super-powered vigilante who is massively powerful, extensively equipped, supremely self-righteous who would be at first mysterious (coming in and taking out a squad of thugs or monsters in a few minutes) and then desirable as an ally perhaps because of his resemblance to a traditional superhero, but his total "without mercy" policy when dealing with evil would be unsettling.

Note that the characters views his own powers as gifts from god, but those of all others are probably the result of witchcraft, possession, and such. Anything supernatural would also be viewed as such, regardless of the source. He is a demon hunter, but he sees demons everywhere.

His "patron" provides him with whatever he needs to keep the delusion alive, even sending him into battles using delusionary or real demons (his own minions).

The character thinks of himself as a hero and an angel of judgment/death/vengeance/wrath. He would defend the innocent and save the world, if he believed there were any innocents left or that the world were worth saving, which he doesn't. He sees corruption and sin everywhere, and demons controlling everything. When he can't find demonic targets he'll go after humans who thinks are abusing their personal power, wealth or fame. He might even be engaged in terrorist acts against governmental structures (planting bombs and such), since he believes that the world is evil and controlled by demonic forces.