What makes a villain scary?

[Kingdoml1]

One scary thing about villains that I think is good to remember, is that they are not necessarily bad people. They can be the hero from a different point of view. Just because he is against the hero in the story doesn't necessarily make him evil as a person. I mean it's like history is written by the winner so that the other guys looked like the bad guys and the other guys were evil. Well it all comes down to a point of view. That's something I think is important too.

I don't know if anyone had mentioned it there was just too much to read for my attention span xD

[MelonHead]

In my opinion a few things make a villain scary, I'm not saying these are things which make a villain because that's a different set of values, this is just me distinguishing the traits I find truly terrifying in a villain. (remember these are my opinions.)

1. The villain has to have some measure of power, this is a must. I'm not necessarily talking about the ability to shoot lazers from his eyes, although that is certainly part of it. A combination of being physically more capable than the hero (mentioned in being a threat to him) and also mentally is important. However, a villain isn't particularly effective as a single man, he needs some kind of support base especially if he's only human. The trick is making it seem as if the villain has support everywhere, the hero can't have anyone they can truly trust, that's fear.

2. The villain must show a disregard for life, honorable villains aren't scary because they're easier to relate to and even like in some respects.

3. The villain must have a clear and terrifying reason for what he does, being pure evil for the sake of it isn't good enough to cause fear in my opinion. (Demons etc are an exception to this because it's in their nature. However in the case of humans and others their reasons have to be carefully balanced so you don't feel too sorry for them)

4. The villain has to win in almost everything he does. Always one step ahead, beating down on the hero and making it seem like his defeat is impossible. Hell, if necessary have the villain win out in the end, that's a scary villain in itself. (A keen example of this, in my opinion, is John Doe in Se7en.)

5. The villain can't be traditional, there has to be a unique characteristic which makes them stand out in my opinion. If I see the same thing twice I relate two villains and find them immensely less scary.

That's about all I can think of right now.

[NecroTec]

The threat to the "hero" by the "villain" doesn't need to be physical/combat related.
I got talked into running a supervillain campaign years ago and had what I thought was a minor independent (but mostly good) NPC: Granny. She'd toddle along at about 2 mph with her walker maybe offering you (if you weren't being mean) a drink of her cherry coke - "made with real cherry cough syrup". When you weren't looking at her she would teleport a ways ahead so she could make progress. She would pass gas that could be very nasty at times (area effect stun) and she could alter a person's age.
The players weren't scared of the heroes - they were scared of Granny because she could take the PCs powers away by making them too young or too old to have their powers. She would not have killed them but the threat to their powers was very significant. I liked having her as a back-up plan in case the PCs got too out of control - not that they ever really did.
.
Having a villain that you just can't seem to get rid of even if the heroes succeed is also good. It of course has to be believeable to the setting. Clones in the (American) Civil War? No. Clones in 2150? Sure. How many did the villain make? Good question. Not that clones are the only way to go - just an example.
.
Which leads to less of a trait and more of a matter of presentation: dropping puzzling hints. The heroes just intercepted a shipment of advanced armor they learn was going to the villain. But the villain supposedly had a setback and wouldn't have that many troops. (Naturally this would be for an intelligent villain.)
.
So my suggestions for mdoification & addition:
*Threat to the Hero/hero's abilities
*Has hidden capabilities and resources

[Vulture]

There's no hard or fast rules to this sort of thing. A good general guideline, though, is that the villain should be a serious threat to the hero and require them to put in effort/ time/ sacrifice to defeat.

[Jinxlynx]

I always find a villain most scary when they can announces their presence and still make you as a player shake in your boots and possibly wet your pants. they do not need to rely on surprise or any other antics to get your hearts racing just knowing they are close by is enough to make you whimper.
This is easily achieved by villains who are just monsters, some sort of grotesque beats or abomination that you know is faster, stronger and smarter than you, something or someone that reverses the role of a hunter and make the player the prey desperately fighting for their lives.

[craptonofgames]

The only way for a villain to be scary is to have them be truly unwavering. There's nothing less scary than a bad guy who hesitates to kill. They need to have a clear goal and be willing to do anything and everything to make it happen.

[Lord Magroth]

Really, to me the whole immoral villains just bore me at this point. Nothing new, we've seen in over a thousand times. Anyway, the scariest villain to me is the villain who thinks he's the hero. He's that guy who goes around slaughtering mooks here and there, robs people, desecrates tombs among other things in the name of the so called "greater good" or because "he didn't have any other choice". And with that note, that sounds oddly familiar.

[Tick]

I don't know if there's any important differences between RPing and writing when it comes to villains, but in RPing a big issue I've seen is the portrayal versus the actual interpretation of everyone else, the claim versus the proof that backs it up. If one creates a villain, and says they're terrifying, it might be difficult to prove it. Failing to pull off a threatening antagonist happens in writing as well, but RPing involves interaction with other, real people (who make an impact in how everyone interprets the world, what happens in the world, etc.). It's worse in an RP if everyone tries to beat the bad guy right off the bat, or avoid getting harmed by them (or other negative things). If the villain's constantly claimed to be powerful, dangerous, problematic or the like (especially if there's no proof), there's probably going to be someone who thinks the villain's irrelevant, not that scary, and personally discredits them in their RPing.
So, I suppose, one thing is to "show, not tell."

Other than that, I'm not sure - personality is important, though, I think. The few times I've made characters intended to be powerful, that had authority, they were a nuisance, not a terror, to other players (or, at least, it was RPed that way). The one character I had that was ever remotely "scary," or "creepy," or in that (very) general direction was this pathetic, scarred, weak guy that had been abused most of his life in a harsh setting and only recently escaped it to try to get away. His life/attitude molded him into a desperate, shameless survivalist that thought the weak were expendable/tools and freaked out at the possibility of harm or being humiliated. He was cowardly, and most of the time, he was very meek and (as said) seemed rather pathetic. The times that I mentioned as at all potentially disturbing were the few moments he violently snapped as a result of his personality and the situation/events around him.

[Everblight]

To me personally nothing makes someone Scary but there are a multitude of ways to make a Villain awesome. I think the main interpretation of 'Scary' is to put his abilities so far beyond your own you just feel helpless. One of the best examples that comes to mind is Aizen from Bleach. Insane character, a genius in his own right but with the raw power to back it up? you can't help but respect the guy.

Also his ability. Something like that would unsettle a lot of people I would have thought. Again it's not necessarily Fear, although I think that could play a part in some people. But just the fact that he is almost forcing you to give up because he is so far out of your league.

[MotherNature]

Eh, one that acts seductive/rapish/pedo-philic...hence Orochimaru.