Villain Story Arcs - Your Favorite?

[SupaFreak]

Hey all, since I haven't played much "red-side" since Homecoming brought the game back, curious what arcs are among the favorites of those that do enjoy the darker side of Paragon.

Thanx in advance!

[ChzBoi]

.......Dr. Graves.............................................................................................................................(I jest!)

[cranebump]

Bane Spider Ruben

[FFFF]

Will be a while until you get there, but Ghost Widow’s patron arc. 
 

One that is both more readily accessible and entertaining  is Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge by Peter Themari. Note it may make you feel like a total scumbag or a true villain. 

 

 

[rolandgrey]

I'm a big fan of the Dean MacArthur arc.  The writing is good, but it's the random mix of powers applied to the Flawed Clone for the big fight with Ajax that keeps me coming back.  You get to see some really neat powerset mixes.

[Mjolnerd]

25 minutes ago, FFFF said:

Will be a while until you get there, but Ghost Widow’s patron arc. 

 

I've always been a fan of Seer Marino's "Oh, Wretched Man!" arc, which is available a lot sooner (15 or so?) and felt like a "Ghost Widow patron arc" before Ghost Widow even had a patron arc.

[Lazarillo]

In the 5-9 range, Mr. Bocor's arc, and standalone missions in general, which, while nothing special in terms of story, are a sort of nice "let's be classy, but still be unapologetically evil" atmosphere that works for a low-leveled villain.

 

A few levels beyond that in the 15-19 range, you have The Aeon Conspiracy, and Echo Down the Aeons from Marshal Brass, and Oh, Wretched Man from Seer Marino, which are all really good lore-building/foreshadowing-type arcs.

 

In the 20-30 range, Dean MacArthur is just one of the flat-out best contacts in the game on either side, and is not to be missed.  The contact who follows off from him, Leonard, should also be done (as you mostly continue to work with Dean during Leonard's arc, too).

 

Also in the 20-30 is Vincent Ross, who has a pretty good arc for villains who seek UNLIMITEDDDDDDDD POWAAAAAHHH.  I find his final mission to be a sort of "lesson" on how absolute power is also absolutely boring,  but some people really dig the finale.

 

25-29, specifically has Diviner Maros who has a cool arc, remarkably snappy dialogue for a 25,000-year-old mage, and his standalone missions are all sorts of cool Butterfly Effect-type preludes to several hero arcs, so if you did a lot of story there, you'll probably enjoy him (but be warned, his standalones aren't Ouroboros, so you may want to turn XP off for a while with him).  Note that if you want to do Vincent Ross' arc, too, do Maros *first*, as if you finished Maros' main arc, he'll get involved in the plot of Ross' arc as well.

 

Also if you have the first Infamy badge in time, Doc Buzzsaw is in the 25-29 range, and her mission dialogue is remarkably fun and and hilarious.  Her later arc I can take or leave, but the original ones she had were great.

 

Finally, same range (the 20s have so much good stuff for redside!) if you're playing a Rogue, specifically, Bobby Curtin's arc is a Homecoming original, and my personal favorite of all the ones they've done.  It's a ton of fun.

 

Level 30-34 range is the Slot Machine.  Like Doc Buzzsaw, it requires a badge, though.  It's the one you get on HC for defeating 200 Family Minions/LTs, which you also need for an Accolade, so worth picking up regardless.  Its second arc is not very villainous, let's just say, but it's just got some darned good writing.  You probably want to avoid Vivacious Verandi, as her arc involves you getting bossed around and just sort of taking it, and that bugs a lot of people playing villains.

 

Level 35-39, I'm a fan of Basse Croupier.  He's a pretty cool cat, as they say.  You also should start your Patron arcs.  You can only get the first one before level 40, but they're all pretty generally well-written.

 

Level 40-44, you can get your second Patron arc.  The most "notable" contact in this range is also the most divisive: Westin Phipps, the absolute most colossal scumbag, make-you-feel-sick, "shouldn't I have some standards?" kind of evil there is.  In some ways, I feel like he's worth experiencing just so you can understand why so many players hate his arcs, but...just know you've gotta have some stomach for them (the only bit of redemption to be found is that you can betray him at the very, very end by allowing a mission to fail...in a lot of ways it feels really cathartic to let that failure happen but you have to do a lot of really bad crap to get to that in the first place).

 

For 45-50, there's two more Patron arcs, and beyond that, Television, which is offbeat and fun, and Vernon Von Grun, who's similarly offbeat, and fun, and full of mad science, and has the best single-mission NPC ally ever, Becky the Tarantula Mistress.  Also Viridian, though the hoops you have to jump through to unlock him are insane, his arc is honestly kinda worth it.

[SupaFreak]

50 minutes ago, FFFF said:

Will be a while until you get there, but Ghost Widow’s patron arc. 

Hopefully I didn't lead you to believe I was just coming back.  Been here the whole time.  Just rarely on red-side.😎

[InvaderStych]

The Radio.

 

Television.

 

Efficiency Expert Pither.

 

Mr. G's entire series of arcs.

 

 

[Snarky]

I have so many.  the Docc Buzzsaw Arcs are very good.  Very Venture Bros Villain type stuff.  The Radio is well written.  the Slot Machine...so Outer Limits. Redside seriously just has thick writing.  Timothy Raymond. There are literally dozens of contacts leaping to the front of my mind right now.  (I'm bad with names but the arcs are so good) It would be hard to pick a favorite.  they are 'work' and you are doing crimes.  It's like asking your favorite exercise in the gym.  You know the good ones.  Pick a favorite?  Don't really get giddy thinking about doing squats but it is a great exercise.  Pullups?  Wonderful exercise.  Deadlift?  Uh huh.  Favorite.  Love is not a connection I feel with them.  They are very good.  Glad to have them in the lineup.  Because they are good.  Want to feel like a villain? Take the mission from Dmitri Krylov to kidnap Paragon citizens and deliver them to Vahzilok for live vivisection.  Because Krylov needs a distraction.  That will make your villain bones.  Favorite?  Hmmmm...memorable!

[Greycat]

The one you get from talking to the gull on the truck in Pocket D. >.> You get a whole new city with a bunch of different people to play with!

 

"Good" is ... kind of relative. There are some that just make you seem like not just a lackey, but a complete idiot of a lackey. There are some that have your character acting like a psychopath, whether your character actually *would* do so or not.

 

That said - Radio, in Port Oakes. And if you play it, Television in Grandville as a followup.

Slot Machine is just interestingly done.

I do like Efficiency Expert Pither. Yes, they're all (or mostly, been a bit) timed, and you can fail. Part of why I like it.

Bocor's thematic... but I can't help but hear him in the voice of the... jamaican? guy that did the 7 up commercials years ago.

Billie Heck's easy to miss early, also in Oakes. Plus you get your own flaming imp to play with.

I seem to find myself running Ambassador Kur'Rekt's arcs from Grandville a good bit.

Crimson Revenant does direct you, but it feels more "bounty hunter"-ish than "Hey, Lackey, do this."

 

[Tiger Shadow]

2 hours ago, Greycat said:

Bocor's thematic... but I can't help but hear him in the voice of the... jamaican? guy that did the 7 up commercials years ago.

 

That would be Trinidadian actor Geoffrey Holder. He played Baron Samedi in Live and Let Die.

 

 

[furniturepolish]

Bane Spider Ruben and Dean MacArthur are nicer to you than any of the Paragon contacts I can think of. For an Arachnos guy, Harvey (he puts himself on a first name basis right away) is so friendly it's suspicious. If you give him a hard time at any point, or even every point possible, he's just very patient with you. For being such a swell fella mixed in with all the actual psychopaths in CoV I always give him want he wants during the arc. Dean is awkward but endearing and he looks out for you multiple times even after you stop doing his missions. I guess that's less of a "favorite arc" answer and more of a favorite contact one, though. That's a distinction I've never made before.

Honorable mentions to Crimson Revenant, Diviner Maros, Leonard, and Vincent Ross. They round out the Villain Pal's of Crime.