Evil Orphan

We took pity on him because he'd lost both parents at an early age. I think that, on reflection, we should have wondered a bit more about that.

— Lord Downey reflects on Mister Teatime (Terry Pratchett, Hogfather)

Basic Information

The Evil Orphan is an orphan adopted by a family who will ultimately bring nothing but grief and misery to them, as he is somehow inherently, fundamentally evil. He may be able to conceal his nature for a while and pretend to be an innocent child, and getting others blamed for his misdeeds. However, eventually the true horror of his nature will be discovered.

See Also

• Adults Are Useless
• Cassandra Truth
• Children Are Innocent
• Creepy Child
• Devil In Plain Sight
• Enfant Terrible
• The Fair Folk
• Mysterious Waif
• Not Now Kiddo
• Pyro Maniac
• Self Made Orphan
• Subverted Innocence
• The Farmer And The Viper
• Uncanny Valley
• Ungrateful Bastard
• Villain
• Wounded Gazelle Gambit
• Youngster

Sources

Bibliography

1. TV Tropes Wiki entry

Game and Story Use

• As PCs rarely adopt orphans of their own, it's probably best if the Evil Orphan was adopted by a family of friends or other acquaintances. Then the orphan can try to make their lives hell, all the while hiding behind his parents, who are oblivious to his evil. Thus, the PCs need to expose him for what he is somehow…