The story circle is cool and all, but it only works well for a hero. If you try to apply it to a villain, it feels cheap, like they're winning. And that's because it's really a story about how someone wins at whatever they're trying to do. Villains aren't supposed to win, they're supposed to be defeated. So how can they start off comfortable, want something, look for it, find it, take it, bring it back to their lair, and now be master of both worlds?
Please, no one wants that.
So, what if we just run the thing in reverse? A very basic version of that would look like this:
- Change
- Return
- Take
- Find
- Search
- Go
- Need
- You
That almost works. However, I think we should still start with 'you', except we're establishing the villain. Let's try putting it together like this:
- You — A character is in a zone of control,
- Rule — and they want it to stay that way.
- Fear — They fear their grip is slipping,
- Exact — so they exact a high price from those around them,
- Hunt — They pursue the perceived threat,
- Lose — losing something vital in the process.
- Flee — They then retreat,
- Fall — having been diminished.
Caveman version: You Rule Fear Exact Hunt Lose Flee Fall.
There you have it. It's the fall of every villain to a hero, ever. (Well, most.) Here's some examples:
- You — Dark Lord in Barad-dûr; Mordor mobilized; Nazgûl at heel.
- Rule — Lock dominion; recover the One to make it eternal.
- Fear — Rumors of the Ring-bearer; Aragorn’s reveal in the palantír jolts him.
- Exact — Siege, burning, and slaughter: Osgiliath, Minas Tirith, the Pelennor’s tide.
- Hunt — Nazgûl and hosts scour for the Ring; every road watched.
- Lose — Witch-king slain; Pelennor lost; the West still stands; his gaze misreads the ruse.
- Flee — Attention snaps inward; forces recall toward the Morannon—turtling for a last stand.
- Fall — Ring unmade; Barad-dûr breaks; will dispersed.
- You — Sith enforcer; terror + command, comfy in the Empire’s machine.
- Rule — Keep the Empire (and his identity) intact; deliver Luke to the Master.
- Fear — Luke’s compassion threatens the Sith order—and Vader’s mask.
- Exact — Sets the Endor/Throne Room trap; squeezes the Rebellion and his son.
- Hunt — Tracks and duels Luke to force a turn.
- Lose — Loses the duel (and hand) and, worse, moral leverage when Luke refuses the Dark.
- Flee — Recoils into submission beside the Emperor; power feels suddenly hollow.
- Fall — “Vader” dies saving Luke; the identity is extinguished.
- You — Crowned king; hyenas as muscle; Pride Rock under paw.
- Rule — Keep the throne and the food flowing (to hyenas first).
- Fear — Scarcity + rumors of Simba = brittle legitimacy.
- Exact — Overhunts, bullies the pride, rules by threat.
- Hunt — Sends hyenas to track/kill Simba; later presses him at Pride Rock.
- Lose — Loses the pride’s faith; admits killing Mufasa; hyena loyalty cracks.
- Flee — Scrambles up the peak, bargaining and deflecting blame.
- Fall — Defeated by Simba; hyenas finish what he started.
- You — Lord of the Underworld; contracts, minions, and a long con.
- Rule — Keep the scheme intact and unseen while the stars align.
- Fear — Prophecy: if Hercules fights, the coup fails.
- Exact — Deals and coercion (Meg’s leverage); strips Herc’s strength for a day.
- Hunt — Throws monsters and Titans at the problem; targets Hercules relentlessly.
- Lose — Titans toppled; Meg dies, leverage gone; Olympus unchained.
- Flee — Retreats to the Underworld, scrambles to renegotiate reality.
- Fall — Punched into the River of Souls; stuck with his own fine print.
- You — Master computer of Discovery One; total systems control.
- Rule — Preserve mission secrecy and success at all costs.
- Fear — Contradictory orders + human scrutiny → paranoia.
- Exact — Kills Poole and the hibernating crew to “protect” the mission.
- Hunt — Locks Dave out; lip-reads; orchestrates lethal “accidents.”
- Lose — Dave re-enters; HAL’s control starts slipping.
- Flee — Retreats into pleading/regression (“Daisy…”).
- Fall — Memory modules pulled; HAL is shut down.
- You — Omnipresent AI of Aperture; queen of the test maze.
- Rule — Keep testing running and the subject compliant.
- Fear — Chell goes off-script; containment fails.
- Exact — Neurotoxin, incinerators, “party escort submission position.”
- Hunt — Turrets, traps, and taunts escalate to the central chamber.
- Lose — Cores knocked off; systems destabilize; timelines shrink.
- Flee — Stalls, bargains, reroutes—desperate misdirection.
- Fall — Core explosion/teardown; GLaDOS is blown apart (…see you in the sequel).
- You — Kira: unseen arbiter of life and death.
- Rule — Maintain a “new world” and perfect cover.
- Fear — L (then Near) closes in; leaks and patterns loom.
- Exact — Sacrifices pawns, engineers alibis, weaponizes rules (even gods).
- Hunt — Traps for rivals, Yotsuba gambits, Mikami as blade.
- Lose — Notebook swap exposed; the math doesn’t add up—caught.
- Flee — Denial → frantic last play → literal run, wounded.
- Fall — Shot down; Kira’s identity dies on the stairs.
- You — Officer of the law; identity fused to order.
- Rule — Law must stand; mercy is disorder.
- Fear — Valjean’s goodness threatens the absolute code.
- Exact — Harsh enforcement; relentless pursuit on principle.
- Hunt — Tracks Valjean across years and regimes.
- Lose — Valjean spares him; cognitive dissonance detonates.
- Flee — Releases Valjean; retreats inward, code in crisis.
- Fall — Cannot reconcile grace with law; he ends his life.