The Bully
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Basic Information

The Bully is a villain who delights in tormenting those weaker than him. This ranges from schoolyard bullies to superiors in a company or other organization (such as the military) to thugs in settings where the legal authorities are either uncaring or unwilling to reign in their abuses (sometimes the Bully is even part of the authorities!). Not all abuse needs to be physical - psychological bullying often works just as well, or even better, in some circumstances and is less likely to lead to sanctions.

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Game and Story Use

  • Bullies can be deeply satisfying for the player characters to take down. But to give a Bully a more recurring role, consider giving him legal or administrative power over the PCs, useful connections (such as relatives) with enough clout to keep him out of trouble, or else making him powerful enough that the PCs need to plan carefully to take him down.
  • Sometimes, player characters can let their powers get to their heads and start bullying those weaker than they are - which in some games can involve entire kingdoms, their armies included! Often, GMs just keep on giving the authorities more powers in an ever-escalating arms race, but that's kind of unsatisfying. Instead, read up on how targets of bullying react to their oppressors, and act out your NPCs in that way. Hopefully, the PCs will realize what they have become…
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