While we haven't seen much of what the next villian will be like (or even if there will be a physical one), I'm just a tad bit on edge on what he/she will be like.
When Malistaire's arc was all said and done, most players pretty much like him. He was sympathetic, relatable, and memorable. You could understand his motives early on (which, when I look back, I don't like, because it makes the ending more expected). You would never guess that Malistaire's end went the way it did, but you could get a general idea. Malistaire's arc was pretty much done when the game started, so every thing was already there and most surprises where told at the begining of the story.
When Morganthe came out (granted her arc took more time to do than Mally's), she had mixed reviews. Some liked her, thought she was better than Malistaire. Others hated/disliked her and saw her as a "let-down" compared to Malistaire. Because her intentions were more vague and hidden than Malistaires, some players may not have connected well to her or make head-or-tail of the 2nd Arc and just ended up hating it. What I like about Morganthe's hidden intentions is that it makes me think. I love researching, theorizing, and finding out something that may or may not work. Morganthe gets me to try to figure her out and as the story went on, every new addition gave a new unexpected surprise that made me want to know more. I don't know what Morganthe's ending could be like, but not knowing makes it more surprising.
But when Morganthe is out of the way, what's next? What I'm really hoping for the 2nd and 3rd Arc to connect and flow with each other. If you notice, every now again, the 2nd arc would back track to the 1st arc, but the intentions of Malistaire didn't really affect what Morganthe wanted to do. Malistaire wanting to revive Sylvia didn't really cause a problem for Morganthe needed to rewrite the Spiral (actually helped her a little in reviving Malistaire for Azteca). The arc's were utterly stand alone. The 2nd Arc didn't pick back up on understanding Malistaire and Sylvia, or the Krokonomicon, or the Eye of History.
KI keeps saying that the Spiral has been changed forever. What this makes me believe is that Morganthe's attempts in rewriting the Spiral will partially succeed and her unleashing of Shadow Magic will cause a major shift in how the worlds will act going forward. What I hope is that the 3rd Arc will build off of this and cause some kind of effect on the villian's motives and actions.
Speaking of the villian, I'm just a little worried about him/her. Malistaire was liked, and Morganthe mixed. But will this new guy be hated entirely in an attempt to be bigger than Morganthe? Or will we compare him/her to Malistaire again and call him/her just another motive-less "let-down"? Will his/her motive be something we could relate to? My concerns are if the next villian will be just as great to the players as Malistaire and Morganthe were. What do you think?
