Mon Dieu Cthulhu! is a world packed to the brim with action and adventure but to pull that off requires a cast list of both brave heroes and nefarious villains. You may have already seen some of its main protagonists, but now it’s time to switch to the dark side as we take a look at its roster of villains and evil doers.
Writing villains is actually easier than writing heroes. They just seem to spring off the page and I have to confess they’re just great fun to create. Putting yourself in the head and mindset of a true rogue is one of writing’s hidden pleasures (and of course they always get the best lines).
One key thing in creating great villains is that they have to have to be believable with genuine goals and motivations of their own. A great rule of thumb is that no evil doer ever truly thinks of themselves as a villain (unless it’s in the epic self-realisation of Mitchell and Webb’s hilarious “Are we the baddies?” sketch).
So, without further ado, let me introduce Mon Dieu Cthulhu’s roster of infamy, the main anti-heroes which Gaston Dubois and his comrades will face in the course of their adventures!
Shadow of the Serpent which features these villains is now available in print, ebook and PDF from Amazon UK and US, DriveThruRPG, Modiphius and direct on my own Books to Buy link (where both great prices and signed copies are available)!
Sous Lieutenant Emil Bastarache
Dubois’ fellow officer and rival in the “Accursed 31st”Dragoons is a veteran lieutenant who has found a comfortable life there drinking and whoring and resents anyone who dares disturb it. In command of the Sixth Company, Bastarache is a small, furtive, weasel-like man with sharp foxy features who dismisses all notions of honour and duty, and is a pure self-interested pragmatist. Shockingly, especially to Dubois’s sensibilities, he is not very impressed by the Emperor himself, and calls hussars “bubble headed dolts and thieves full of insane notions of duty and honour.”
Even worse, he doesn’t smoke, is smooth shaven displays a shocking lack of facial hair which Dubois considers near scandalous and he also has little instinct for men, or horses. At their first meeting the pair clash when a drunken Bastarache mistreats a local woman and from there their relationship deteriorates even further until they become sworn enemies.
Sergeant Henri Belbrave
Bastarache’s enforcer, an experienced sergeant who rules by fear, intimidation and a pair of iron fists. A bare knuckle boxer and regimental champion, Belbrave is a large imposing man with a full bushy beard and caterpillar-like eyebrows rather undercut by his comical bowl-like haircut. Years of punishment on the battlefield and off of it mean Belbrave is no great intellect and relies on Bastarache to do most of his thinking for him. Yet once set on a path he is a formidable and relentless foe, pursuing his victims without mercy or remorse. Away from the spotlight Belbrave can sometimes be childlike and naïve and is extremely sentimental over the stray kittens he sometimes adopts. Woe betide anyone who takes this for a sign of weakness though.
La Espina
A renowned and ferocious bandita, the masked leader of the local Spanish guerilla forces is an implacable enemy of the French who she regards as invaders, interlopers and a stain on the honour of Spain. As long as they remain on Spanish soil she has sworn to harass and kill as many of them as possible, waging brutal guerilla warfare which aims to terrorise the occupiers . She has proved troublesome, raiding convoys, snatching men, leaving their remains in gruesome, inhuman tableaux for the French to discover.
Don Carlo de Montoya
A nobleman from the New World, Don Carlo de Montoya discovers Dubois in a compromising situation with his fiancée and demands satisfaction by challenging the daring hussar to a duel. The outcome of this duel sparks a series of events that plunge Dubois ever deeper into the forces of intrigue and mystery which underpin the Mon Dieu Cthulhu universe! As Don Carlo begins to display cunning, strength, and endurance beyond human capabilities during their duel, Dubois is sorely tested and only a timely intervention by his faithful sergeant, Sacleaux, saves the young lieutenant. As the fallout from their duel unfolds, Dubois begins to suspect that their meeting might not have been quite so accidental after all.
Don Lorenzo Vibora
Dark, dynamic, and coming from the New World Vibora is a rich man and has made a big impact on Spanish society with his wealth, taste, and liberal spending on the arts and investments. Haughty, arrogant and supercilious he wears bold, outlandish fashions and can seem something of a fop, but these rich trappings conceal his true nature as a deadly dueller, swordsman and all around cad. Scandal has followed him everywhere he goes, and it is rumoured there is a darker side to his nature, but his liberal sprinkling of coin covers any such concerns. Although he plays a fairly minor role in the latest adventure Shadow of the Serpent, destiny has marked Don Lorenzo Vibora as a major thorn in Dubois’s side and fate will not be denied!
Jean-Marc Baptiste
Baptiste is thought to be French and is said to enjoy the Emperor’s confidence and may even be a part of his secret service. He is a facilitator, a puller of strings, a worker in the shadows, and an expert blackmailer and power broker. Very little is actually known about him, although he appears to have first come to prominence in the Egyptian Expedition with the Armee of the Orient in 1798-1801 where he emerged as one of savants, the scholars who accompanied the expedition. He is a spare, rather aesthetic looking man with a shaven-headed and dark eyes which are always watchful and occasionally shine with contempt and a kind of quiet ferocity. More will emerge on this mysterious figure in the sequel to Shadow of the Serpent, Keeper of the Hidden Flame!
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