Like last post, I will answer this in three parts:
Favorite recurring NPC from an actual play stream
Pumat Sol, as presented by Matt Mercer in Critical Role:
Just watch the first three to five minutes
Shopping is kinda boring. However, when you shop for magical items, one would expect such a place to be wondrous. The way Matt Mercer achieved that magical feel was by making it's proprietor be very unique. Being a voice actor as well as an excellent DM also didn't hurt.
Favourite recurring NPC in someone else's game that I've played
Father Lucian Petrovich, as presented by Esteban Flecha in our late Curse of Strahd campaign:
It took me a while to decide since I had a couple of very good NPCs to choose from, but I'm opting for this one because what makes them all memorable for me all have one thing in common.
While I can commend my DMs for their clear effort poured into these NPCs, in the end what makes them memorable for me is depends largely on my experience with them. A good example was Father Lucian Petrovich; he didn't have a particular character quirk or anything that would make him stand out from other priestly NPCs, The way the story turned out, however, made him the center of many things, to hilarious results.
SPOILERS FOR CURSE OF STRAHD
You see, the town where Mr. Petrovich resides, Vallaki, had a lot of weird and corrupted stuff going on in it. The Burgomaster was deranged, his lackey had a demonic influence in him, and his son was, in secret, performing deadly rituals on unsuspecting victims. And then you have the woman who was trying to overthrow him, who clearly did devil worship, kept her insane daughter locked in her room, and slept in her bed next to her dead husband.
Needless to say, my Lawful Good Paladin was having none of it, and neither were the rest of the party. After exploring all of this stuff and executing all of them, we ended up burning their houses for good measure.
Amidst all this craziness, there was one hallowed church that stood as a stalwart relief and refuge for the villagers. This is where we delivered all those child NPCs we kept meeting. Father Petrovich was a man we trusted. As we continued our antics, sis disposition towards us went from grateful to wary. The town, however, was not happy.
Eventually Father Lucian Petrovich became Burgomaster because of his family ties, so it all worked out in the end; even though we're not welcome in Vallaki anymore, Father Lucian will always be hesitantly willing to humor us.
Favourite recurring NPC in my games
I like a lot of my own NPCs, and I feel like this is picking a favorite from my own children who I love all the same, but I will go with Zeroth because he's easy to explain since his story is over.
Zeroth was the BBEG in one of the last long-term campaigns I had. He's the one that unleashed SIN to the players. Zeroth is special to me because, with him, I was able to make a villain that the players both loved and feared. Zeroth knew he was superior to the PCs and he flaunted this whenever he could. He would only appear to them when they were separated and alone, and only to dangerously toy with them. All the while, he would be charismatic, almost friendly.
I had a picture that fit him perfectly, but I lost it. Instead I'll use a picture that's based in a scene I used as inspiration for the final battle with Zeroth.
I can write a whole post about Zeroth, but I'll just describe the final battle:
The heroes arrive at an altar while Zeroth was in the middle of a ritual with 4 golem-like constructs; Each construct was built to be a master spellcaster from different power sources: Divine Magic, Shadow Magic, Truename Magic, and Psionics (Zeroth covered Arcane Magic). The ritual would have had Zeroth absorb all their power and knowledge, in the hopes to unlocking the secrets to ascending to godhood.
When the heroes managed to slay one of the constructs, Zeroth completed the ritual prematurely and it became an aerial chase to destroy him before he absorbs the other constructs and becomes potentially indestructible.
In the end, the heroes defeated him, and he went out with a satisfied smile.
Zeroth was the BBEG in one of the last long-term campaigns I had. He's the one that unleashed SIN to the players. Zeroth is special to me because, with him, I was able to make a villain that the players both loved and feared. Zeroth knew he was superior to the PCs and he flaunted this whenever he could. He would only appear to them when they were separated and alone, and only to dangerously toy with them. All the while, he would be charismatic, almost friendly.
I had a picture that fit him perfectly, but I lost it. Instead I'll use a picture that's based in a scene I used as inspiration for the final battle with Zeroth.
Fire Lord Ozai from Avatar: The Last Airbender's finale
I can write a whole post about Zeroth, but I'll just describe the final battle:
The heroes arrive at an altar while Zeroth was in the middle of a ritual with 4 golem-like constructs; Each construct was built to be a master spellcaster from different power sources: Divine Magic, Shadow Magic, Truename Magic, and Psionics (Zeroth covered Arcane Magic). The ritual would have had Zeroth absorb all their power and knowledge, in the hopes to unlocking the secrets to ascending to godhood.
When the heroes managed to slay one of the constructs, Zeroth completed the ritual prematurely and it became an aerial chase to destroy him before he absorbs the other constructs and becomes potentially indestructible.
I sprinkled in some Doomsday Zone for added over-the-top-ness
In the end, the heroes defeated him, and he went out with a satisfied smile.
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