Dungeons & Dragons: How To DM Evil Characters

Learn how to DM a party of evil characters in D&D!

Dungeons & Dragons allows players to fulfill their fantasy dreams in a fun and engaging setting. In the same breath, some players find themselves doing something as drastic as swinging their hammer at a jester’s head because he looked at them incorrectly (speaking from personal experience).

Evil characters come in all backgrounds and personalities, and being able to manage them as a Dungeon Master is a delicate balance between letting your players have fun and making sure things don’t spiral into chaos. There are a few tools you can incorporate to ensure that everything stays under control while keeping the gameplay enjoyable.

What Exactly Is An “Evil” Character?

While it can be tempting to head straight to the alignment chart when pondering what defines an “evil character,” it’s not that simple. For those who are unfamiliar, the alignment chart dictates the nine basic personality types for your D&D character.

While these alignment types are better suited for DMs shaping their role-play for certain monsters and NPCs, basing a player's character around an alignment can be challenging. Like the real world, people are inherently complex creatures with mixed emotions, opinions, and morals based on thousands of factors.

A perfect example can be made by looking at a Lich, who is naturally Lawful Evil. For a story element, a Lich may want to use their power to resurrect a lost loved one while killing others in the process, and despite being Lawful Evil, their morals can arguably be considered “Good.”

Instead, when discussing “evil characters,” they can better be described as characters who want to purposely do evil things to the world and the people around them, whether for their betterment or a different cause. While it can be fun to stop the final boss of a DM’s story, sometimes players want to be the “big bad end guy” (BBEG) themselves; thus, evil characters (often an evil party) are created to have a unique Dungeons & Dragons experience.

Creating A Story For Evil Characters

Since much of Dungeons & Dragons involves the Dungeon Master creating a story and world for their players to enjoy, things surprisingly don’t change much when evil characters are involved. You can use the same story you may have planned initially and let your players naturally interact with it differently.

Using even the most niche example of a niche story, you will learn that keeping the same premise of a story initially meant for the good guys can still be enjoyed the same way.

Whether using pre-written adventure books or writing a story from scratch, don’t be overwhelmed with having to rewrite/plan your whole campaign, as anything can have an evil twist to the plot.

Managing Evil Characters & Having A Mixed-Alignments Party

Much like running a normal campaign, it can be beneficial to simply ask the players what they want to do for their character. Some may want to rule a kingdom, while others want to fist-fight a god.

Simply asking what each party member wants from their character is also a great way to weave plot points and character motives.

Sometimes, you may have a party where some players are evil and others are good. For this scenario, be extra careful to make things even and fair to prevent infighting.

Having a mix of “alignments” in a party can cause clashing motivations and even make gameplay unenjoyable if there is too much conflict. While you can still have differing character morals, it is your job as the Dungeon Master to keep checking in with the players so everyone can have fun without being affected by someone else.

Be sure to consistently remind players that this is just a game and all in good fun. Healthy debates and arguments are always fun, but make sure nobody becomes frustrated or upset because of the actions of another player.