For those who have used Halaster Blackcloak in any substantial way in their campaigns: What was his primary motivation? What was the singular goal which, despite his madness, he would return to again and again? I mean, of course, in your campaign, as there really is no true/right/canon answer.
I like the idea that he's always on the lookout for newer, more powerful apprentices, much like Emperor Palpatine. Not only is it sufficiently ominous, but it's also dynamic. He could target one of the players in a campaign and tempt them with all the power in the world and it could be a source for great drama if they refuse and fight against him, or accept and try to retain their sanity. OR an NPC known to the players could be drawn in by Halaster's promise of power-- it could be a small-time side bad guy getting promoted to major villain, or it could be a friend/ally of the party that needs to then later be saved from themselves in this mad quest for power.
Very cool ideas! As a followup, to what purpose might you have Halaster put said apprentices? He's certainly established a very long-running reputation for having a variety of powerful apprentices, but one has to wonder....why? What's he getting out of this deal, exactly?
To draw another Star Wars analogy: in the Acolyte, the main antagonist's (slight spoilers) goal is to gain an apprentice and, while his motives for what he wants to do outside of that remain obscure, it is very clear that he saw the gaining of an apprentice as the natural next step in growing his own power ("the power of two", as he called it).
Basically, once people get a certain amount of power and master what one person can achieve alone, it's only natural that in order to become *more* powerful, you need *more* people by your side (or in Halaster's case, beneath him).
As far as what he wants all this power for, I'm pro keeping players in the dark about it. He's the MAD Mage, and I think leaving his motives inscruitable preserves that mystery. Also, players can wrap their heads around seeking power for power's sake, so the wider goal is less relevant from the perspective of players relating to the character.
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I like the idea that he's always on the lookout for newer, more powerful apprentices, much like Emperor Palpatine. Not only is it sufficiently ominous, but it's also dynamic. He could target one of the players in a campaign and tempt them with all the power in the world and it could be a source for great drama if they refuse and fight against him, or accept and try to retain their sanity. OR an NPC known to the players could be drawn in by Halaster's promise of power-- it could be a small-time side bad guy getting promoted to major villain, or it could be a friend/ally of the party that needs to then later be saved from themselves in this mad quest for power.
Very cool ideas!
As a followup, to what purpose might you have Halaster put said apprentices? He's certainly established a very long-running reputation for having a variety of powerful apprentices, but one has to wonder....why?
What's he getting out of this deal, exactly?
To draw another Star Wars analogy: in the Acolyte, the main antagonist's (slight spoilers) goal is to gain an apprentice and, while his motives for what he wants to do outside of that remain obscure, it is very clear that he saw the gaining of an apprentice as the natural next step in growing his own power ("the power of two", as he called it).
Basically, once people get a certain amount of power and master what one person can achieve alone, it's only natural that in order to become *more* powerful, you need *more* people by your side (or in Halaster's case, beneath him).
As far as what he wants all this power for, I'm pro keeping players in the dark about it. He's the MAD Mage, and I think leaving his motives inscruitable preserves that mystery. Also, players can wrap their heads around seeking power for power's sake, so the wider goal is less relevant from the perspective of players relating to the character.