Board Thread:Off Topic/@comment-16047389-20131219193422/@comment-24261859-20131219221132

A villain obviously needs to be threatening. Not necessarily on a world-ending scale, though, but he/she/it shouldn't be steamrolled by the heroes at every turn, like your example of Ancano. Arcturus Mengsk in Starcraft II was an example of being too weak. On every mission, his forces were utterly obliterated by Raynor and then Kerrigan in Heart of the Swarm. He never stood a chance, which is why he doesn't make a particurlarly interesting villain.

As for motive, the Joker is a good example of one type of villain. His unreasonability does make him truly scary and he's definitely powerful enough to threaten Batman both physically and morally. Yet, there is another side to the coin. I also like villains who are more grey, whose opposition to the heroes make them antagonists, but they may actually have a good point. In the Graphic novel version of Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind, there are plenty of antagonists (Kushana and Kurotowa at first, then the Torumekian King and Dorok Emperors, and so on) but they're not just "evil." Immoral at times, yes, but they all have very well established and logical motives that make the reader unsure if they're truly villains or not. This, in my opinion, is just as memorable as villains like the Joker since it gives the heroes a moral dilemma (This guy opposes me, yet could he actually be right?), makes more realistic and interesting characters, and adds more story possibilities.

Both kinds of villian can be successful, but it depends on what type of story you want to tell. A grand, large-scale story of politics and intrigue might warrant the latter type, but it could also work with a Joker-esque villian since his insanity would be even more terrifying when scaled up. Likewise, a story focused on a few individuals could be good with a Joker, since the protagonist would be able to experience the chaotic, violent nature of the antagonist up close, but with a more grey villian could offer a great chance for personal development on both sides.