Conflict-à-trois

After last week it's time for a conversation about three-ways. It's one thing to say that they are complicated, that they change the nature of the story. The first decision is always who are the three sides. Answering this helps to open up the other questions like which two sides will come together to deal with the third. That is if any of them come together. It happens most of the time, but it is not a requirement. Whether or not two side with each other one will always mess up the plans of at least one of the other two sides, if not both of them. It all comes to down to the other huge question of what are the goals of each side. The goals may be deeply ingrained in the whom of these three characters or groups. Or it may be just of matter of what they are willing, or unwilling to do.

As complicated, or straightforward, as the conflict may be there may always be a fourth matter of complication. The three-way conflict struggles in the directions afforded those possible outcomes without the affect of any outside influence. An outside influence throws the whole dynamic into a spin. Although allegiances may form and break up, or shift based on the actions of one or more of the sides, they do not shift as fast or as easily when there is an external impetus. Each party of the conflict will try to manipulate events to their advantage, but some events are adjustment proof. They can't be planned for. They may not be of help to anyone. They may even be immutable and only worked around. There are different events that can be like this.

Disasters are the first example of an immutable event that cannot be avoided. It may be used to advantage by any of the characters or groups if they can be predicted. Plans are foiled or need serious revision if an unplanned for disaster strikes. Such disasters could be weather related, seismic, or even smaller scale such as a fire. Depending on the setting and pre-planning a disaster might even be a weapon in one side's arsenal. This is especially true of fire, bombings, avalanches, and the like. Of course even false indications of such a disaster can be a tool to use. Fake bombs or threats, false tidal wave warnings, or even pulling a fire alarm throw a wrench into someone's plans. As almost always, the possibilities are endless.

Mood: feisty.
Music: Porno Star by Motley Crue and Slick Black Cadillac by Quiet Riot.

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A Thousand Hacking at the Branches

Henry Thoreau is attributed as saying, "There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root." It's a quote that I've always found fascinating ever since I heard it from the lips of Captain Howdy in Dee Snider's "Strangeland". I believe the meaning is that it is better to get to the core of the evil and deal with it than waste time with minions. I prefer to twist it around in a kind of reverse. I like the idea of it being about tapping into evil rather hacking away at it to get rid of it. There are thousands brushing against what it is to be evil and amongst them is a true monster. In a recent interview to be posted next month I brought up my dislike of pathetic punk and rabble sort of evil. I have a real taste for the boogeymen the monsters fear.

Every now and again there is a story or a movie where a group of ne'er-do-wells or even outright miscreants are out doing their damage, sowing chaos, and/or generally ruining other people's lives. Then they come into a situation like so many others before, except that this time they will be the victims. There is more than one way for the worse evil to prove that it is worse. It doesn't always have to be the stock answer that they are more violent, more sadistic, or more perverted. Here is where manipulative and insidious is more fun, even if eventually it comes down to a gruesome end for the lesser evil. Another choice I find less than desirable is for the victims to be brought down by their own in-fighting. Some find great satisfaction in that, but I find it wears thin. This leads to one of the defining elements of hard-core evil.

Like anything else, it's easy to overuse it, but I find the worst evil that villains can do is bring out the evil in otherwise good people. It's nothing to make the selfish and the uncaring to commit heinous acts, but if you can make upstanding people willingly do the wrong thing, what they would never do on their own in most other situations, then you're getting somewhere, evil-wise.

There is an unasked question here. Where does the protagonist fit into this story? A lot of the time there isn't one; not in the sense of a hero. Sometimes it may be the least offensive of the victim villains. Some other good person caught in the middle and able to provide a sense of urgency or heightened tension is a good choice. Things can get complicated. That is a consideration to keep in mind. Tying back to last week, it is a more relatable, good, person that provides for a greater anchor to the horror for the audience. Finally, the three-way conflict has its own pros and cons. The dynamic is different, and it affects the warp and weft of the mood, pacing, and character requirements as much as it does the narrative fabric.

Mood: meditative.
Music: Original Sin by Meat Loaf and Instruments Of Destruction by N.R.G.

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Two Shades of Good

Conflict is not always between good and evil. Sometimes the most gripping or poignant conflict is between people who both think they are doing the right thing. Keep in mind that a lot of villains believe they are doing the right thing. Very few of them believe themselves to be evil. They get downright confrontational if anyone suggests they are doing evil. This does not include the masses of selfish users and takers who flaunt the law simply because they do not think it applies to them or plain do not care if it does, until they end up incarcerated. No, this is about the evil masterminds, when they're not delusional or caricature take over the world types, who want to mould the world into the vision they have for it. This is about the despots, the mafia don, the cult leader, and the countless others who are not introspective enough to see the harm they inflict.

To reiterate, and it may be a matter of opinion--it certainly isn't something to be overused without cause and enough originality--the most exciting conflict, with great impact and resonance is between two forces for good. Some of the excitement is in-built just because it's different. Some of it is because it's harder to decided for which side to root. There is also the matter that the cost and results are different depending on which side is victorious. The audience--been a while since it was said but the audience could be readers of your short story, novel, comic book, or role-playing game or your video, movie, TV show audience--will pick a side and a significant number of them will decry the other side as being in the wrong, if they don't go so far as to equate them with villains. This is true even if there is a three-way conflict including a definite evil person or group.

The three-way conflict gives the most flexibility in crafting a sinuous, whether that is convoluted or not, plot. The sides can play off of each other, go for outright manipulation of each other, and generally get in the way so much that not a one of them can reach their goal. The potential to derail all of their plans could lead to a disaster that none of them wants to see. This in turn will cause one or more sides to reverse course to some degree, switch sides, or pull out--this will be common among the villains who can just try again later or do without that particular victory. The dynamics of the conflict can change dramatically, turning heroes into villains, and turning expectations entirely on their head. The best thing to do in creating one of these conflicts is to make it so that there is a painful decision/aspect to one of the good sides confronting the other good side.

Mood: scrupulous.

Music: Peace Sells by Megadeth and Distant Skies by Stratovarius.

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Anatomy of a Horror Setting #12: Like Ogres, Onions, and Cakes

Though it need not be true, seeing as how psychics are using the power of their minds, albeit in fantastic ways, these psychic people might also be fairly intelligent. With this in mind (pun intended) any psychic worth their mental abilities is going to employ more than just power to achieving their goals. For the criminal, opportunistic, or morally ambiguous types an excellent tool in their arsenal is working their plots and goals in layers. A "good" psychic might also put some of these techniques to use, but it may leave them feeling dirty. These ideas put toward getting to a desired solution are not new, and certainly not exclusive to psychics. They are not limited, either, to criminal enterprise, and they apply to the physical world as well as the electronic world.

The key advantage to using layers in problem resolution is to create distance between the psychic and their target. This is traditionally done by using proxies or surrogates, both of which serve the same purpose. Each stands in for the original person; they are replacements. The difference is that a surrogate only takes the person's place in the endeavour; the proxy also acts as the voice of the original, or makes decisions on their behalf. In simpler terms the surrogate or proxy is a third party. This is how, according to television, smart criminals hire a hitman. The crook tells somebody who works for them to contact a hitman to place a contract to have someone killed. This is a smart plan because the crook never meets the hitman and the hitman never knows who placed the contract.

A psychic can make someone commit murder, steal something, leaving a door open, or not log out of a computer. This of course is only one layer. By adding more layers the overall plan becomes stronger, father reaching, and perhaps even more subtle. Using the murder for hire situation as an example, it becomes a murder by proxy in the hands of a controlling psychic. The murder isn't connected, by normal means, to the psychic. However it may be entirely out of character for the murderer, leaving some suspicious. To alleviate this the psychic can create a motive for the murder, by forcing an altercation between the murderer and the victim. Witnesses can be made to remember additional events. In this way layer upon layer can be added until it can never be traced back to the psychic.

Mood: down.
Music: Paper Sun by Def Leppard and The Longest Day by Iron Maiden.

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