Thread:Mesektet/@comment-27729149-20160128170019/@comment-3581997-20160520093720

Well, if it feels natural to the character, try adding a validating traits. Red Skull is a nazi, however he is willing to die for his cause. Albert Simon wants to wipe out all life on the planet and just treats the heroes like their desire to have everyone survive is just a deference of opinion between them about what humanity is worth. Lord Recluse believes the weak should either accept the strong as their masters or literally die trying to defy them, a principle which he applies to even himself.

These are all self admitted monsters. And there is a different method used with each. Skull is willing to give his life for what he sees as a worth while cause, as unquestioningly evil as it is.

- Cause

Albert bares no hard feelings for trying to oppose him. He feels everyone needs to die to redeem humanity, heroes disagree, may the best man win.

- Affability

Lord Recluse applies the same rules of kill or be killed to everyone including him. Even encourages his own subjects to try to stop him so they either become strong or accept why he is in charge.

Equal footing.

Compare this to others who leave those points off.

Grant Ward is also a member of Hydra, but unlike Skull he betrayed his friends and country to Hydra just to be socially accepted, he ultimately didn't care about Hydra, yet still sold his friends out for it.

-Traitor

Kuja wants to destroy all life on the planet because he is dying and if he dies everyone else might as well too.

-Brat

Apocalypse talks about how only the strong survive and those weak enough to be killed have no place in this world, yet he has been killed numerous times and all of which he has come back, not through his own power, but rather cause of of his fan-boys gave him a helping hand out of the grave. Each time he unironically keeps spouting the same lines about how he deserves to rule the weak cause of how superior he is to them.

-Hypocrisy

The 3 first ones have the same story functions as the lower 3. Yet through a few simple tricks the upper 3 actually manage to show more depth, all while still unapologetic functioning as villains. I don't know where you are internally with you characters but try applying similar traits and seeing how they run with one. See if you can apply cause, affability or equal footing to your villains, don't have them shy away from doing wrong, but give them an internal logic to follow that validates what they are doing for them.