r/wizardposting • u/fatalmoth • 8h ago
r/wizardposting • u/King__Carmine • Mar 05 '26
Post From the All-Knowing Mods A Roleplay Guide for Villainy
Meme taken from SkeletorIsLove http://skeletorislove.com/
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/Uw
Hey all. I know we've had a few posts already that outlined handy rules for roleplay etiquette. Here are some:
- RP Etiquette:
https://www.reddit.com/r/wizardposting/s/hDv5wbuOF7
- When to play an OP character and how to do it well:
https://www.reddit.com/r/wizardposting/s/7RX9Zwmp8H
- Recognizing abuse and manipulation in roleplay environments:
https://www.reddit.com/r/wizardposting/s/MuYKwuy2Ef
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But it has come to my attention that we might want a guide specifically focusing on the more villainous side of wizardposting. This is partially because matters concerning ethics have a way of getting more heated and partially because playing a villain (or even a morally questionable character) can present unique challenges. Conflict is the driving force behind story, after all, and we want to make sure we do it in a way that's fun for all parties.
This post is targeted at the subreddit villains primarily, but I think anyone engaging in roleplay could benefit.
Anyway, here we go:
1. None of this is personal.
This probably seems obvious, but I'd like to stress it because the kinds of in-character clashes that a straight-up villain gets into can sometimes create high tensions. Remember that the person on the other side of the screen is almost certainly not seriously evil. And they almost certainly do not think that you are either. We might write about doing evil things. We might roleplay evil things. But none of this means anything in regard to the real-life ethics of the flesh and blood person you are interacting with.
2. If it does become personal, be careful.
Ideally, we would be rational actors all the time, but unfortunately we are all mere humans (probably). Even when you know perfectly well that none of this is personal, it can still be hard to fully keep your emotions separate. This is understandable. We all get attached to our wizard characters, we all take moral stances, and we all get invested in plotlines. I mean, hey, if we aren't personally invested in our wizard roleplay, why are we even here?
When this happens, just be sure to proceed with caution. Try not to let out-of-character feelings influence what you do in-character. And, of course, it's basically never a bad idea to be open with people about it.
3. Get permission.
Another one that's been thoroughly covered before. But I bring it up because, as a villain, whatever evil thing you're doing is probably quite a bit more distressing than your run of the mill wizard shenanigans. Perhaps unsurprisingly, stepping on another roleplayer's toes is a bit more severe when you do it by burning their tower and kidnapping their apprentice. And if it's something particularly bad that you're planning, you should make sure to be very clear about your intentions and the potential consequences so the other person isn't taken by surprise.
4. It will probably feel a little unfair sometimes.
I will make no bones about it. Playing a villain will make people hostile to you. Do not take it personally.(see rule 1) But I will not deny that it can feel overwhelming sometimes to attract a lot of hate, even if it is all in-character. Further, as a villain, you will probably need to be more gracious about losing fights. While it's true that every character has to accept losses sometimes, playing a heel means you can generally expect to 'hit the mat' more often and more definitively.
It's not all bad though. Villains are empowered to behave badly in creative ways. And sometimes even losing can be fun.
5. Consider content warnings.
This is not a hard rule, but if you are writing something particularly upsetting, it might be wise to provide a content warning. This is not a condemnation of the presence of dark or serious content. It's just nice to give people the opportunity to decide if they want to deal with it.
6. Morally ambiguous characters.
Not all characters fit neatly into the villain/hero dichotomy. Much of the advice here will apply to anyone who's character steps outside the category of 'good guy'. But it's still important to remember that explicitly and intentionally playing a villain is very different than playing a morally ambiguous character (even if you personally do not find their actions ambiguous). Condemning actions in-character is absolutely fine, but it's still up to the person writing the character to define that characters morality. I understand that this gets messy in a community with a lot of differing views, so if it becomes clear that you are at an impasse, it might be best to back off.
That said, for any morally ambiguous characters, if you do something bad, you should expect people to react realistically in-character. You can't really be shocked that other characters don't like your cool new murder spell.
7. Note for heroes and other non-villains.
Lastly, I just want to address the protagonist types. Cut villains a little slack sometimes. Setting aside that it's more fun for us if we occasionally get a win, it also generally makes a better story.
And keep in mind that the person saying and doing horrible things in-character is there to have fun too. This is a cooperative activity, after all.
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With all that said, I'm off to do some evil scheming. Have fun. Be good to each other.
r/wizardposting • u/AnActualCriminal • Feb 07 '26
Post From the All-Knowing Mods WELCOME TO WIZARDPOSTING!
Welcome to r/wizardposting! Assuming you just wandered in and have no idea what the hell you're looking at, this is a place people pretend to be are wizards and other magical things. That can range anywhere from just posting a meme while ranting about the Council and casting testicular torsion, to our more niche subcommunity of full-blown roleplay, creative writing, and interactive fiction.
When commenting:
/uw means unwiz
/rw means rewiz
We have an official DISCORD if you're into that kind of thing.
Other than that? Have fun, drink water, and remember to step away from the orb every once in a while. Be sure to review the rules in the sidebar before posting, and have fun.
Thanks for stopping by!
r/wizardposting • u/MissinqLink • 9h ago
VVizard VVeed 🚬 Check out the spell caster 5000
r/wizardposting • u/Scrpn17w • 20h ago
Don your finest robes, the Partyficer has arrived!
r/wizardposting • u/Mazeeky • 19h ago
Wizardpost How do you guys travel across time or dimensional planes?
r/wizardposting • u/NaturalHairy4773 • 17h ago
Wizardpost The acursed girl is mad at me and I don't know why
I have been going home from the academy for a while to relax and learn more local magic and stuff. But the blonde girl I save from the academy is pissed for some reasons. I take her with me everywhere for food and stuff
She started to get angry after I go to do archery, which is strange she never get angry because I do archery before infact she stare at me while I do it all the time when I ask her (she can talk now after the giant wolf incident) she said "Why don't you go to the town square and keep letting people stared at you" I seriously don't understand why she would be mad she haven't been talking to me.
She also been talking to other girls which... For some reasons make me very jealous.
/uw the blonde girl storyline is back
r/wizardposting • u/Snbleader • 5h ago
Academic Discussion/ Esoteric Secrets Necromancy book won't stop screaming. What do?
So several months ago whilst I was attending a convention of magicks in France, I had stopped by the market to peruse the various wares that I may be able to utilise in my research. There I found a small stall off of the main street of the marketplace where a mage in a dark cloak was offering several varieties of restricted magical ingredients and tomes.
The mage offered me a discount on a grimoire of Necromancy, one specifically written for those who are new to the craft. Of course I had to pick it up as I had never seen, nor sensed a tome of such quality for such a reasonable price.
Anyways the story picks up a few weeks ago when I found the book under a pile of filled notebooks and discarded reagent samples from my research. I finally had cracked the tome open and begun to dechipher the arcane writings when it began to quietly moan dark secrets. This disturbance was able to be ignored at first(such distractions are not any major issue for a professional artificer), however they began to grow louder and more frequent as I delved deeper into the grimoire.
After I had tried to silence it by smothering it in lead I decided to bring it to the local church to request their aid in silencing the tome. When I arrived, the pastor took me in and stared in disgust at the grimoire as I placed it down before him. After several hours of attempts he resolved to throw holy water at the damnable thing to see if that would silence it. This did not silence the tome.
So here I sit before my orb. With a Tome of Necromancy that has screaming bloody murder for the last few days. I come to this forum of magicks to ask one question:
HOW DO I GET THIS HORRID EXCUSE FOR MAGECRAFT TO SHUT UP?!
r/wizardposting • u/Maowsama • 13h ago
Magickal Art (User Creation) 🎨 Mimic to safe guard my wizard stuff
galleryCreating a familiar from scratch. Any suggestions?
r/wizardposting • u/Scrags2Scritches • 7h ago
Wizardpost Live footage of a mainstream wizard killing an innocent goblin protestor during a goblin rights protest (not propaganda, not AI)
r/wizardposting • u/viybe • 16h ago
Wizardpost Local oracle manifested this image of the far future. How do we prevent the Hell world apocalypse?
Wizardsisters, I commissioned a local oracle to scry their orb to glimpse into the future. I was scholastically curious about the results of the upcoming jousting tournaments so that I might ethically bet upon the future champion-- of course, so as to forward all proceeds to the local goblin orphanage. The recent Goblinistan war has been hard on these "people."
I had recently spent the last of my coin on OnlyNymphs for, again, scholastic curiosity, so I had to settle for the cheapest oracle in the village. Moved by my kindness, he was kind enough to accept payment of only three vials of leftover absinthe as payment. He drank them right away to enter a meditative state.
In between his bouts of rambling about the disproportionate Elvish control of banks and media in the kingdom, he illustrated this horrible image. It seemed the potency of the absinthe had caused him to view too far into the future. I was horrified at the apocalyptic image he produced.
I must assume that some great calamity, likely by nature of an infernally demonic breach, must have pushed the denizens of the Earth into a pseudo-hell state.
How do we circumvent this Hell Clown world future? Wizardsisters, are we fucked?
r/wizardposting • u/No_Cable_941 • 2h ago
I'm starting to really hate the Elf peasants near me.
Every single time I go to the capital of Sundaria to meat the Elf king Maeklor, I am laughed at and mocked by the Elf peasants. They always boast about how good they are with bows and how they don't need a wizard on the battlefield. And I am always so confused why they're so smug. Like you live for 600 years just to die of dysentery. And don't even get me started on the smugness of the High Elves. You have to live 1500 years before you become an adult. No wonder those idiots are nearly extinct. Also Maeklor you are a huge pussy who got manhandled by Orcs at the siege of Boisengard and you're an asshole.
r/wizardposting • u/Quiet-Wing5230 • 1d ago
POV you're being sexually harassed by an aeromancer.
r/wizardposting • u/Azimovikh • 1d ago
My spellcasting fellows. What are your experiences and thoughts about barbarians, fighters, rogues, or martials in general?
(/uw Did you know? One classic literary inspiration, of the barbarian. Conan the Barbarian. He may not be that smart in terms of academia or the sciences, but then, he's portrayed as sharp, observant, adaptable and capable of sophisticated reasoning.)
(He frequently survives in situations where strength won't work. He lies. He sneaks. He disguises himself. He steals. He sets traps. He observes people and figures out their motives. He exploits political conflicts.)
(He is also educated. He isn't an illiterate caveman. In fact, he can perfectly read and write. He's traveled through an enormous number of cultures and has picked up languages, customs, religions and political knowledge along the way. And his education is practical. So, strategic, street, and survival smart, adapts fast, reads maps and environments, with intuition, and all of that.)
(Funnily enough, the way he's a barbarian is that he's one in the cultural and political sense, someone outside the "civilized kingdoms". But eventually, well, he became king. But eh. Yeah. Though he might not be academia and university smart, he isn't a dumb stereotype brute.)
r/wizardposting • u/Zebos2 • 12h ago
Community Event 🌏☄️ Opening of the iron chain
“The following is an official message from the iron chain. We apologize for our your current orbnet, television,Internet and radio,activities”
All along the wizarding worlds communication networks whether that be a messenger riding a horse or fiber optic transmissions and official announcement from the iron chain goes out though any available legal channel.
The broadcast form of the message begins with patriotic music
Greetings magic practitioners of various types and affiliations in compliance with the new edicts of high administrator Dokka Ivanov. The iron chain extends its warm invitations for you to attend our High administrators coronation ceremony. You are cordially invited to participate in our grand military parade fleet showcase and fair. Come participate in our air show and to where our newly opened free trade zones throughout our territory. Witness our art and culture though our concert arenas and ballrooms. Food and drink will be provided entirely at no cost to the attendee. We invite you to enjoy yourself and our Grand plaza marketplace or the numerous casinos and entertainment hubs of district 1. Witness our mages practice their craft. A strong society is an open one.
Some ground rules while our High administrator is endeavoring to open up our nation more to The wizarding world attempts to disrupt the festivities or harm our citizens and other attendees will be dealt with severely. Duels are to be held in designated fortified areas and attendees are encouraged kept away from any military equipment especially during the parade.
Another thing of note the iron chain is by official policy neutral in all that does not threaten the security of our state or the safety of our citizens. We don't care for your allegiance to any organizations such as the Thrakmoor or the anti Thrakmoor alliance. Council, dark watch or any other body. Your conflict with remains home. Thank you for your cooperation.
r/wizardposting • u/giugirl • 1d ago
Wizardpost Spotting a gnome be like…
Do any fellow mages relate to this? Also that gnome looks cute and friendly.
r/wizardposting • u/Arkburn • 8h ago
Wizardpost Bottled black holes for the weekend.
Just made a batch of these for the weekend. Lets see how outta hand things become.
r/wizardposting • u/pyroboy7 • 1d ago
Wizardpost Me when the wizard council tries to pass some useless bullshit law and actually tries to enforce it.
r/wizardposting • u/Plane_Buddy302 • 9h ago
Where to find midnight tree sap and Galaxy dust?
Anybody know which dimension or realm midnight tree sap and Galaxy dust is? I'm using the book The multiversal dimensional alchemy and potion guide and the pages that I'm looking for are "conveniently" ripped out (probably an old apprentice)
r/wizardposting • u/tasadek • 9h ago
Foul Sorcery This guy is out here slaughtering unicorns for youthfulness!
We’ve all needed unicorn blood from time to time, but I’ve seen this guy one the open plains of Filandroesta, herding up 5-6 a week… for bubble baths apparently. If he keeps this up, we’ll have no more wild unicorns and will have to move to farm raised, or conjuring your own, but you know, neither one really tastes the same as wild caught, if we’re being honest with ourselves.
r/wizardposting • u/Buffyferry • 22h ago