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OK, so here are some off-the-cuff thoughts on what makes an NPC memorable.
First thing is, unlike a character in fiction, an NPC has no inner monologue that anyone is privy to. If players are gonna connect with them, it has to be because of what they do and say out loud. https://twitter.com/KeithAmmann/status/1335366783700758530
First thing is, unlike a character in fiction, an NPC has no inner monologue that anyone is privy to. If players are gonna connect with them, it has to be because of what they do and say out loud. https://twitter.com/KeithAmmann/status/1335366783700758530
Second, they should stand out from other characters in the scene or the setting. They're different in some way. A cheerful young artisan in a village full of dour dwarves. A sodden rogue in a cage who blesses his good luck when the party shows up. A flashily dressed orc bard.
Those first impressions matter! Give them something to say that shows their unique perspective on the scene they're in.
You don't have be able to "do voices," necessarily, but adding something to the way they speak—again, that makes them stand out—cements their personality.
You don't have be able to "do voices," necessarily, but adding something to the way they speak—again, that makes them stand out—cements their personality.
Having them OFFER TO HELP—importantly, in a way that doesn't cast doubt on their competence in doing so—is pretty good. Players rarely turn down the offer, and they remember a good turn.
Maybe you've introduced them in a way that casts doubt on their intentions. Have them fulfill their offer with perfect fidelity. Now players not only remember the struggle over whether to trust them, they remember that in the end, their trust was rewarded. That seals it!
Going back to first impressions: Introduce them in a way that makes players uncertain what to expect. The way Tolkien introduces Strider is an old trope, but there are countless ways to freshen up someone sitting in the dark, then standing up into the light.
Let individual PCs notice certain things about the character. The Observant ranger spots the stranger's boots and the hilt of his sword. They're soft around the edges, with tooling elaborate but indistinct—signs of long-term use. Yet they're spotlessly clean.
Give them something they can do that PCs can't do. That rogue in the cage claims a special relationship with Tymora. Whenever he fails a saving throw or ability check, he always fails forward, somehow. You're looking for a key in a room full of keys. He says, "This one?" Yep.
But the thing shouldn't be so powerful that it overshadows the PCs. You can let an NPC steal a scene, but not the whole show. They should never step on a PC's moment of awesome.
Memorable NPCs will do things that other NPCs won't do—and not just with the party. The cheerful dwarf redsmith has been skimming bits of brass, making them into shiny trinkets, sneaking out of the village and giving them to a flock of kenku because he thinks they're interesting.
The memorable NPC doesn't have to be friendly. They can be a real jerk. (E.g., Theseus in Hades.) They can be unique in a way that's hostile or off-putting, because of their higher status or some such.
As the PCs grow more powerful and famous, the jerk NPC's otherwise unremarkable hangers-on start to lose interest in them and pay more attention to the party. No one will forget how that NPC reacts to the change in relative status.
You can make an NPC memorable even before the PCs ever meet them, because their influence reaches far and wide (e.g., Strahd). The party learns a great deal about them long before encountering them for the first time. That first encounter will be met with great anticipation.
The thing you absolutely can't do is make that NPC fascinating only to themself. Bluntly: The world is full of highly competent, misunderstood, brooding anti-heros and grandstanding blatherskites. Why should we care about THIS one?
Play up the flaws, sure. But also play up the ideals. An NPC who really cares about something can, over time, get the PCs to care about it, too.
As for creating iconic villains, have their attitude toward the PCs over time follow the trajectory of the apocryphal Gandhi quote: "First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win."
Give them chances to communicate through words, not just actions. Let the party find old letters or intercept their mail.
Introduce other NPCs who want to see them dead, perhaps even worse than the PCs do.
Introduce other NPCs who want to see them dead, perhaps even worse than the PCs do.
Have NPCs act in contrary ways. The hooded figure who joined you at Sindra Silvane's couldn't care less that people can't get resurrected anymore. Only rich and well-connected folks get resurrected. Regular, hardworking folks don't. He thinks the "death curse" is a blessing.
That's all I've got for now … I'll add to this thread later if anything else pops into my head.
Subvert tropes. What do you think of when you hear the phrase "elf fighter"? Probably not a glaive-wielding, foul-mouthed soldier who's AWOL from her unit because she couldn't stand the lieutenant.
