The Dark Side of the Color Pie

Fear, death, horror, and twisted monsters. The color pie can be a fascinating tool for delving into the darkest corners of Magic the Gathering's expansive Multiverse. Over the years, I've used these vile themes as framing devices for many videos, driven by my own morbid curiosity. The result is a library of oddities that I would like to share with you as one comprehensive marathon. I like to call it "The Dark Side of the Color Pie," where in each discussion, we will reveal how Magic's five colors are twisted by different concepts. So, sit back, turn off the lights, and let's begin.

White fears the harbinger of senseless violence: the slasher, the threat that stalks the shadows, bringing fear to the innocent and guilty alike. This genre of horror goes against White's understanding that people are inherently good. But the slasher operates outside of such notions, where morality, reason, and the social contract mean nothing, and survival becomes a desperate, lawless struggle against an unstoppable force. Even more unsettling for White is the idea that the slasher thrives in the very shadows that order and law are meant to illuminate. Where White seeks to build a society of rules and collective safety, the slasher embodies the failure of those systems to protect the vulnerable. It's not just an attack on individuals; it's an assault on the entire system that White painstakingly builds on the back of righteousness. The slasher forces White to confront the possibility that no matter how perfect the system, evil can still slip through the cracks unchecked. In the face of such primal violence, White's deep-rooted faith in justice is shaken, leaving White in a constant battle to maintain control over a world that seems destined to veer into sadistic brutality when left unchecked. This genre of horror is best exemplified by films like *Halloween*, *Friday the 13th*, and *The Texas Chainsaw Massacre*, each driven by killers who act without remorse, motivated by primal or irrational urges with no higher purpose guiding their actions, only suffering and death. This type of horror is a nightmare because it represents the collapse of everything it holds dear, because even after the killer is gone, what's left is fear, and in that fear, our social bonds begin to erode like a sickness.

Blue fears that which is beyond understanding and reasoning: that of the cosmic or Lovecraftian horror. Common themes in this genre often revolve around very rational blue characters who come to the terrifying realization that no matter how much they seek to understand, there are things that lie beyond the grasp of logic. The horror in this genre lies in the fear that the more Blue tries to learn, the more it begins to understand how insignificant and powerless it truly is in the face of an infinite, unknowable cosmos, where knowledge brings madness, not mastery. Revealing that some truths are so vast, so alien, that the very act of seeking them out can unravel the seeker's mind. For Blue, this is the ultimate betrayal; its pursuit of mastery leading not to enlightenment, but to the abyss of total madness. The fear isn't just of the unknown, but of the knowledge itself becoming a poison, warping the mind and distorting the very fabric of reality. In this way, cosmic horror exposes the limits of Blue's confidence in reason, forcing it to confront the terrifying idea that some things are meant to remain forever unknowable. In the stories written by the master of this genre, H.P. Lovecraft, such as *The Call of Cthulhu*, *At the Mountains of Madness*, or *Shadows Over Innsmouth*, characters with sound intellects encounter vast, ancient forces beyond human understanding, entities so alien and powerful that the mind can barely comprehend them because they pull away the logical curtain that humans place to reason away the world around them. Instead, they find out that they are nothing, insignificant in the face of the infinite void.

Black fears the hand that takes a capable person and crushes their resolve until their will is broken: that of the institutionalized horror, where societal systems and institutions strip away not just power, but the very identity that Black strives so hard to define and control. Black fears this kind of horror because it fights so hard to break free from society's restrictions, seeking to forge its own path and identity. But in this way, identity becomes a trap, something that makes it stand out like a nail to be hit with the hammer. Institutionalized horror represents the loss of everything Black holds dear: the destruction of ambition, autonomy, and self-determination, leaving Black powerless, trapped in a system that controls its fate and erases the hard-fought clarity it has achieved. This institution might be something literal, like that of an asylum that keeps you drugged and bound, or more abstract, like that of the crushing weight of a gray bureaucratic system where one is but a number to be filed and forgotten. Black fears the horror that twists one's sense of self, making one doubt their own strength and purpose. It's not just the stripping of power that terrifies Black; it's a subtle erosion of belief in one's ability to ever reclaim it. This form of horror is like a mirror reflecting back an image of Black not as the self-reliant individual, but as just another cog in the machine, a faceless number behind an endless web of mediocrity, an existential dread that Black cannot abide. This concept is exemplified in films like *Brazil*, *1984*, or the series *American Horror Story*, specifically *Asylum*, which all explore this concept of a system stripping a competent person of their identity through bureaucratic systems that act as if they're there to help, when in fact, they are nothing but machines of an oppressive system. For no sin is greater to Black than being deprived of its ability to carve out its own life; instead, it's left screaming and broken.

Red fears the loss of autonomy, of its ability to act on its own, and of the loss of control found in possession or poltergeist horror. The horror here lies in the concept of being trapped within one's own mind and body, watching helplessly as a foreign force takes over. For Red, this is a nightmare scenario where its sense of self and freedom are stolen, leaving it a prisoner in its own skin, controlled by something it cannot fight, as it acts out on its own, hurting those you love. Sickness of the soul, you see. Red thrives on spontaneity, on the freedom to feel and express its emotions without restraint. But possession horror warps that core essence, turning Red's own desires and impulses into weapons wielded by something else. It's not just the fear of being unable to act freely, but the terror of seeing its own fiery spirit twisted into something monstrous. The horror lies in the betrayal of its very identity; its love, its anger, its joy, all manipulated to serve an alien will. We see this sort of horror play out in films like *The Exorcist*, *The Conjuring*, and *Hereditary*, where characters are overtaken by malevolent forces that strip away their free will, transforming them into vessels for spirits or demons. For Red, which values freedom, emotional expression, and impulsive action, the idea of being possessed, of losing control of its own body and desires, is the ultimate nightmare.

Green fears the perversion of the sacred life and body we have been granted, as seen in the body horror genre, where flesh is torn, twisted, and made into something unrecognizable. It's in these gut-wrenching scenarios where Green loses all sense of who it is and what this life was supposed to be. In this way, Green is disturbed by the desecration of the natural order itself, where body horror turns the beauty of life into a grotesque mockery of what was granted. You see, Green holds life as sacred, something pure, with every creature and form having its rightful place. But in body horror, this balance is shattered, with flesh becoming a canvas for unnatural transformations, twisting life into something monstrous and wrong, where the body, once a symbol of growth and vitality, is manipulated into a vessel for suffering. Green fears this because it goes against everything it cherishes about life's inherent dignity and purpose. The thought of life being reshaped without the guidance of nature, of something artificial taking control of what was once sacred, is a nightmare that gnaws at Green's core. In these moments, Green faces a world where life is no longer a gift, but a curse, a horrifying reminder that even the most fundamental truths of existence can be twisted into something grotesque and terrifying. In films like *Hellraiser*, *The Fly*, and *The Human Centipede*, we witness how the beauty of life and the human form are twisted into something unrecognizable, and what's more is that the perpetrator finds satisfaction in such acts. For Green, which values the harmony and beauty of nature, these perversions of life are the ultimate nightmare, defying nature itself.

Across each of these horrors, we see a stark reflection of the deepest fears that lie at the heart of the color pie. Each of these fears speaks to something intrinsic about the colors themselves, a breaking point where their core values are turned against them, leaving them vulnerable to horrors that challenge their very identity. In facing these nightmare scenarios, each color confronts the terrifying possibility that the world is not as safe, knowable, or natural as they believe. It's here, in the face of such primal fears, that each color's vulnerabilities are laid bare, as they grapple with horrors that force them to question the very foundations of who they are.

When it comes to Phyrexia, there's always a level of religious undertones to their cause, but no Praetor exemplifies this concept more than Elesh Norn and her Machine Orthodoxy, a fanatic group who see their leader as high priestess, Phyresis as the religion, and the godhead being that of the Father of Machines, a seat held by K'rrik after his corruption during the Turning of Mirrodin. Eventually, Elesh Norn would ascend in her own right, appointing herself the title of Mother of Machines. Elesh Norn is also the face of structure when it comes to New Phyrexia, as well as before she forcibly united all under her banner. Each of the five Praetors vied for control and their own version of the future for their kin. Now, with all under her firm control, she has begun to make moves to spread her vision across the Multiverse and bring all flesh to completion, as we are told succinctly on the card Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite: "The Phyrexians whisper among themselves of other worlds. If they exist, we must bring Phyresis' magnificence to them." As you can see, the parallels between White and that of Elesh Norn are quite obvious. Of course, it's White twisted into a sort of pure, yet vile, version of itself due to the Phyrexian influence, but the lines are clear. For one, the religious angle of her and her Orthodoxy is something we see in White quite often, as White turns to dogma as a way to find some greater guiding principle that one can work towards. This, in turn, creates hierarchies and structures by its very design, which again, is all too White. In her own way, she has found purity in corruption and fashioned a sort of new truth from that of the oil. The messaging is one that isn't overtly evil: that of uniting all under perfection, and yet, we know all too well what the consequences would be. In her mind, the Phyrexian way has opened her eyes, and through that vision, she wishes to indoctrinate the Multiverse. I find this sort of motivation in a villain so gripping; in some twisted way, she believes her vile actions are a blessing to those who rely on their flesh, yet we know all too well the suffering that follows in her wake.

Jin-Gitaxias is an interesting case in that it believes that completion is simply not a step far enough. In its mind, the Phyrexians should accept nothing less than the Great Synthesis, even seeing the Father of Machines as an imperfect being. This philosophy is directly displayed in the horrific figure that is Jin-Gitaxias, as flesh is all but forgotten on its body, its voice that of grinding metal. It is through this Praetor's great skills and ambitions that the Phyrexians have even been able to make progress on other planes and is the one who has discovered a way to complete Planeswalkers without removing their souls, allowing the Phyrexians to reach new worlds. Jin-Gitaxias sees itself as the final form of what the Phyrexians can achieve, and through experimentation with both magic and technology, true perfection can be achieved. In a way, this process really has no end, and I believe Jin-Gitaxias would work away in its labs until the end of time for the simple pleasure of it all. We can glean this concept from the card Synthetic Destiny, which reads: "To Jin-Gitaxias, perfection is not a goal, but a process." Jin-Gitaxias is Blue, if the soul of the color were to be removed, which is fitting for the Phyrexian is not but a soulless version of what it once was. Blue is a color that can care for little else but progress, but when any morality is stripped away, it becomes something else entirely; it turns from focus to obsession. This Praetor sees no one else and no other end than that of its mission. I find it very fascinating that there seems to be a lot of parallels between Phyrexians in general and that of Blue; both share the idea of finding this perfection, a concept that's always out of reach. It's almost as if the Phyrexians are each finding their own shade of Blue: that of the pursuit of something beyond the mortal form it began with. When it comes to Blue Phyrexians, it is then the purest form of this idea, as we see with Jin-Gitaxias's unwavering hand of iteration. Of course, it is pushed beyond any reasonable bounds, and this is what makes it so villainous.

The mantra of Sheoldred and those that follow her is simple: "All believers shall kneel to the prayers of the Father of Machines, and most of all, to her. Those that resist will be forced to do so." The Black-aligned Praetor's ideal goal for that of the Phyrexian is one of pure domination, nothing less. Sheoldred has shown herself to be cunning and ruthless in all things, a trait that has allowed her to seize a position as the Praetor of Black Mana, even among the seven equally capable things. Even after her defeat at the hands of Elesh Norn, she has been a vital tool in the invasion of Dominaria, planting sleeper agents across the plane, allowing her to have eyes and ears everywhere. To Sheoldred, the subjugation of the Multiverse is a mere inevitability, her confidence echoing out from the card Phyrexian Rager: "Resist if you must. It makes no difference. As with Mirrodin, your world will bow to Phyrexia once again." We are witnessing a color boiled down to its simplest form in a way, a removal of the soul of the color; set in another way, the removal of the fleshy humanity that even Black held on to, only to reveal the vile and twisted remains of its corpse. Black is a color that does indeed seek power, or at the very least, seeks to gain the most for itself. For Black, this is a case of self-ambition, but for Sheoldred, it's dominance, plain and simple. You see, once the soul is ripped from this idea and the Phyrexian curse takes its place, there's naught but the desire to control and enslave, a concept that puts you and those close to you above every other being, a true feeling of superiority, as if Sheoldred believes the Multiverse deserved nothing less than subjugation. As we can see so far, there is indeed a strong tie to the mana in which these Praetors exist within. That's why our next Praetor goes against the Green, even if it believes in some aspects of Phyrexia.

Ur-Golem is by all means unique among the Praetors, and I believe this factor tells us a lot about the Phyrexian curse itself. In the beginning, Ur-Golem prided itself in what they called the Great Work, an idea that meant finding perfection through the forge. Yes, Ur-Golem was aiming to make all new in the Phyrexian image, but there was something else there; it was really a desire to help the lost find the right path through Phyresis, and not a decree acted against them. In fact, when the Mirans fled to Ur-Golem's domain, the Praetor let them be, turning away from them, as they were not to be forced to be made anew because of the vision of Ur-Golem and their methods. The Red-aligned Praetor was at odds with the others early on, eventually cast out and emblazoned with the title of heretic. Now, Ur-Golem aims to shake up the rule of the Praetors, or at the very least, create some friction between Elesh Norn and her ilk. What we see with this Praetor, something interesting and aligns with what I've touched on already with the others: the truth of the Praetors and the relationship to the color pie is that of stripping away any other misgivings a color might have. And yet, this very trait is why Ur-Golem is unlike the others. The Red Praetor values freedom, just as Red does, and this is not sustainable within a system born of a hive mind. Even those turned into the Phyrexian way preach of Ur-Golem's desire for freedom and expression, as we see declared for all to hear on the card Priest of Ur-Golem: "Even in New Phyrexia, Red mana sparks glimmers of individualism, passion, and freedom." Everything about this quote is at odds with the end goals of the Phyrexians, as they wish to strip everything from the Multiverse and make all one. This is why Ur-Golem would have inevitably drifted away from the others, and why its title of heretic was but an inevitability.

For Vorinclex, the road to perfection is found through natural selection, as natural as one could find on a plane of Phyrexians. Leader of the Vicious Swarm, this Praetor pits all within its control against one another in order to allow the strongest to rise to the top, while the weak are left to be consumed in turn, creating an organic hierarchy of predator and prey, with Vorinclex rising to the top simply because the Praetor was an apex within this system. For Vorinclex, the fight is the entire point of it all. In the mind of the Green Praetor, Phyrexia should be one giant arena where one can prove their dominance. The card Unnatural Predation explains the single-minded thought process of Vorinclex: "Best. Domination by the strongest. That is all that matters in the tangle now." As you can see, Vorinclex almost has a hands-off approach, allowing what will happen to happen. This, of course, all aligns with Green at a fundamental level. Sure, there is the interference with nature and that of Phyresis, but this is merely the catalyst for evolution in the mind of Vorinclex. From this point, nature will take its course and breed its own vision for the beings of New Phyrexia. The challenges of finding one's own lane is how nature forms its interweaving of responsibilities. So, in this way, if New Phyrexia was left alone, at least those of the Swarm, a natural order would begin to form with the apex predators at the top once again. This is a focus on a single aspect of Green to the point of near parody of itself. Just like with all of the Praetors we've discussed so far, their beliefs are a mixture of the oil and that of the colors they represent, which in effect strips everything away except a single core ideal, one that becomes an obsession. And for Vorinclex, that obsession is strength.

As you've noticed, there is a running theme when dissecting the Praetors: that is color twisted and stripped. When in their natural environment, a color is rather robust and displays many nuanced forms, but for some reason, the effects of Phyresis strips away a color's philosophy to a fundamental level, and this is seen in how the colors are represented within each Praetor. White obsessively leans into this single aspect of religion, wishing to bring about a holy war against the Multiverse. Blue is then perfection taken to its extreme; everything is but an experiment to be iterated upon. Black then is pure dominance and self-fulfilling arrogance. Then there is Red, a color that because of its stripped-down nature ends up rejecting the Phyrexian way entirely, as freedom is the true goal. Finally, there is Green, a color boiled down to mere displays of strength and the culling of the weak. All of these are but grotesque displays of what these colors ought to be, as if we're witnessing the flesh torn from each color, their soul removed. We're not looking at the colors in their natural form anymore, but rather the twisting of something beautiful into something unrecognizable.

Death is tyranny. Like all tyranny, it must be opposed. If Black is the color most comfortable with death, then it is of no surprise that it is White who opposes it the most, not just because of its implications on society, but rather from a moral standpoint. It will go to great lengths to preserve life and stave off death wherever it can. It cherishes the existence of not just itself, but others as well. This all boils down to White's desire to uphold others and to foster peace. In that way, it sees death as the ultimate suffering and the denial of its core beliefs. Because of this, we often witness White putting itself in harm's way just to save someone from certain death or laying its hands on others to heal and bring them back from the brink of its cold grip. It is a color that cares deeply for life, for the prosperity of all, and in that way, it sees death as the greedy peddler of misery, as it will take and take and leave nothing in return for the living except a hole which can never be filled. Perhaps it is because of this hole that is left behind that White is the color to memorialize its dead most of all, as if the living must remain, if not in mortal form, then at least in their memories, facilitated through works that represent them. Statues are erected of great people so that they may inspire hope in the living long after they're gone. Truthfully, it's not just heroes who are given such rights either; to White, such respect must be paid to the common folk as well. Graves are laid, stones are crosses at their heads, in a practice of providing peaceful rest to those who have died and a place to mourn for those that remain. Life is a practice of finding joy through the pain and hardships of the day-to-day. In some ways, this act of laying their cared ones to rest is an act of finally providing some quiet in the afterlife. In the eyes of White, death is indeed an inevitability, but it is something that need not come if it can be stopped. And if death comes knocking on your door, then at least rest can be found in your passing. "I can't see all that the future holds, but I can keep us one step ahead of death."

Blue views death as the end of progress, a finality that puts a stop to one's own interests and goals. In this way, it should be avoided at all costs because of this. Blue will often try to solve death, indeed trying to lengthen its own life indefinitely if it can. For how can one find perfection in total stillness? Blue is no fool, though; it does not believe that even it is above death, but if it can be staved off, Blue will try everything at its disposal to fulfill this end. You see, in this color's eyes, death provides nothing but a missed opportunity. This extends into the communities and relationships that Blue holds as well; so much is lost when a person moves on: knowledge forgotten, skills no longer put to use. A person can aim to teach all that they have learned in their life, but there's no replacing those who give this world so much. This is the tragedy of death in the eyes of Blue: a void left that is irreplaceable. Now, this is not to say that death is nothing but tragedy; there is something else there, something that does indeed draw Blue in, a dichotomy of sorts. You see, death is yet another question left open, a nagging uncertainty that must be solved. In many ways, even if it is sure of its finality, Blue is still interested in the idea of passing through this existence, all in order to peer into what happens after. In reality, it is the ultimate question of existence, one that must be experienced to truly understand. And in the end, isn't that the true catch? Our minds wander to what death can mean and what happens after, but the only true way to find the answer to this great question is to go there ourselves. "What is death?" he asked. The Raven: "Your next birth." it replied.

Death and Black are intrinsically linked in Magic: The Gathering, almost to the point of being overrepresented when it comes to the concept, with over 200 cards which mention death in their flavor text for this color alone. This number becomes exponentially bigger when you look into all the other cards in Black that mention the dead, cause death through their effects, or bring back the dead from their rest. Much of Black can be gleaned from its attitude towards death. It is willing to inflict it, eager to utilize it, but resistant when it comes to its own. The reason why Black is all too willing to inflict the final sleep on others comes down to its desire to take the straightest path to its goals, and if there is ever anyone standing in that path, they will rarely think much of the swiftest removal of that obstacle. It is a color who does not think about the moral implications of its actions once it has made up its mind. Of course, this does not mean it will just kill indiscriminately, but rather, if it wants something bad enough, it will not stop until it gets it, and if this means the act of murder, then so be it. On the other side of it, Black does not see death as an end, as it's all too willing to utilize the dead for its own means. You see, what good to anyone is a corpse, motionless in its grave, when it can be brought back to serve a master's goals? In this way, Black is the main color when it comes to resurrecting the dead, as the dead are yet another tool that others pass by due to the moral implications. To Black, when morality is stripped away, there is no barrier between death and life. Things change, though, when death is pointed inward, as most things are when it comes to such a personal color. Black will resist its own death, going to great lengths to preserve their own existence. If a pact with a demon will grant them eternal life, they will take it, or any other manner of shaping deeds which would preserve their time among the living. So fearful are they of losing their life that they will return in undeath if that is the only option, as to die would result in no longer acting out its wishes, and it will resist the stillness of death and all that it means at any cost. I often think of this quote in regards to Black and death, a quote born from the writings of a real-life character who is very much Black-aligned: Anton LaVey, who said, "Life is the great indulgence, death the great abstinence. Therefore, make the most of life here and now. If you must die today, make your death worthy of legend."

Death is inevitable, but that does not mean it has to rule our thoughts and take away from the present, at least in the eyes of Red. For if we fear death, we may stop ourselves from experiencing life itself, as we would refrain from doing what our impulses ask of us when we stop to question its ramifications. One might think of this as some philosophical ideal, but the truth is far more simple, as Red is the color of the present, and focusing on the future is not what this color does, especially if it is something that cannot be avoided. In that way, Red will push any dark thoughts about its final end outside of its mind so that it may focus on the here and now, finding joy in what is rather than fear in what will be. If death is imminent and its grasp is unavoidable, it will still hold firm to its ideals. Because of this, it is then the color who will not go quietly into the good night, as they say, and will fight and thrash until its body no longer allows for motion. This is best visualized in the warrior's final stance, one who will go down in a blaze of glory, shedding any fear for anger. Red is the burning flame that shines bright; its life goes out in the same combustion it came in through. Now, things are a bit different when it comes to the death of someone Red loves or cares for deeply. In many ways, it would rather die itself than see those it holds dear suffer such a fate. Sure, they are impulsive and rash, but the love of Red is the envy of many colors in its passion. In this way, Red will throw itself on the coals for another rather than see them burn, and if they do see them pass, they will mourn with a great intensity.

Green druids do not fear death, for they know that nature will only prosper from their passing. The dance between life and death is one of perfect balance, as it is no more than the two states of being. No one outweighs the other, and both are as inevitable as the other. These are the simple facts that no living thing can deny. So, in that way, Green does not fear death; it accepts it, as it accepts all things. The only aspect of death that displeases this color is a wasteful one: a death that comes for any living thing before its purpose or destiny has been fulfilled. Why cut down a tree if its oxygen fuels us, unless that tree can then provide in its passing? Not consumption for its own sake, but rather for the prosperity of another life. Its limbs crafted into a cradle for an infant, fresh and wide-eyed. Green will always favor growth over decay and will do what it can to foster life, but if a death can grant or sustain another life, it is acceptable. When it comes to the death of one that Green holds dear, then the passing will be treated with ritual. They will prepare the soul and body for its transition. This can take many forms, depending on the culture, but the result is the same: all will come together to enact the proper rites that have been passed down from generations long gone themselves. Through such actions, those that pass are not completely gone. Green will hold on to the words of their ancestors and ask for their guidance, for through passing into the next plane, there is a grander perspective granted to those who have experienced both states of being. Green sees all who pass on as remaining among us, surrounding the living, not fully here, but never completely gone. It is not a memory, but rather a Pantheon of loved ones watching overhead, imbuing the land with their spirit. Whether death is on our mind or we have experienced the passing of one we love, it is an aspect of our life we cannot escape. Everyone's outlook on the subject has subtle effects on who we are and is reflected in our own philosophies. It pays to discuss this topic, framed by the color pie, even if it can breed fear, for if we can peer into the eternal darkness, eyes steady, we will find answers and understand not just the characters of the Multiverse, but ourselves as well. So, I ask you, which color or colors reflect your own views on death, and how has it shaped your outlook on life?

With discussions like these, I find it very important to start out with White, especially when the topic goes against what we expect of the color. For if there is horror in White, there can very well be horror in every color, as dark is always lurking in the shadows which the light produces. In order to understand what this would look like, we will then have to figure out where its enemies, both Black and Red's, shared fears would lie, and to me, there is nothing that these two colors fear more than the loss of freedom or autonomy. This is something that White is all too capable of inflicting on others: a monolithic system created to protect, but rather is something that oppresses. The hand of an unfeeling brickwork laid before you, dictating your life. In some ways, this fear is all too real in our own world: a fear of authority or that of being wrapped up into a system against your will, with nothing you can do about it but scream out for no one to hear you. When White produces horror, it is rarely one single entity, but rather a collection of beings, a system, and infrastructure that aims to squish you and control you. Picture this: you're taken into an institution. You're not ill or violent, but rather submitted due to some clerical error, some mistake of the system, or by someone who held power over you. You plead your case that you should be free, but no one listens, a system deaf to your plight. They dope you up on medication to the point that you can't really do much more than stare out the window, a blank expression on your face as you watch people walk by. Freedom so close, yet the only thing holding you there is the institution itself. You feel yourself scream on the inside, but nothing comes out. You're trapped with no sign that you'll ever be free. Years go by like this; the bleach white walls are all you see when you wake, and in your dreams, you don't even look out the window anymore. You accept your fate, and all for what? A breach of power. Everything has been taken away from you, everything you value: your freedom. You see, White conjures the fearness of being placed somewhere just because the system said so, a place where our humanity is stripped away. It is not horror forged from some dark being, but rather the horrors of an uncaring system.

The horror of Blue, to no one's surprise, is one based in psychological torment. But the reason for this is not solely based in the themes of this color; once again, it is rooted in the fears of that which both of its enemies share: that of Green and Red. With the basis of the psychological theme in place, this fear becomes apparent. In the case of Red, it would be that of a loss of identity and self, or that of identity delusion, as if who it is is slipping through its fingers like fine sand. This would follow in neatly with Green and its own fear of the loss of its grip on reality or the warping of its perception of what it has come to know as the truth of the world around it. Both of these colors look at life from similar but different lenses, and both colors are based in a sort of truth or understanding of oneself and one's place. Losing grip on such fundamental aspects of identity and perception would indeed create a downward spiral into madness. Taken from these abstract terms, it might look something like this: imagine a person who lived a normal life up until this point, one where they had a stable home and people that loved them. That is until they began to notice little things that weren't quite right: a voice in their ear, a hand in the shadows, a twisting of their perception of people's faces and of their memories. Nothing major at first, enough to warrant disbelief, but nothing they couldn't chalk up to being tired or stressed. This, of course, begins to get worse and worse. They start seeing full-on creatures hiding in corners and grinning over the shoulders of their family. The sky twists into colors unnatural; the voice is booming now. They feel themselves questioning everything they see and hear, as nothing is as it seems. What's most maddening of all is that it feels all too real, as real as anything else, and yet no one seems to notice but them. Now they can't sleep, can't think, can't be themselves. Every sound, every interaction, and every memory becomes a torturous exercise in self-reassurance. Their relationships begin to fall apart as their mental state further spirals down into darkness. Now they're always living in a state of fear. Nothing they experience can be trusted. "Who am I? What happened to me? Has my life always been this way?" In many ways, the horror of Blue is one that puts into question reality, our own understanding of it, and of ourselves. It is madness through and through.

Black is a color that in many ways transcends this discussion, as its representation of horror has more room to breathe, in that it's a color who steps along forbidden paths and dark corridors, and in this way, it showcases horror in many forms. That said, it does not escape this discussion because, as you will find, the horror of Black still is based in the context of instigating fear in its enemies, of twisting what they see as good into something dark. When looking for the fear between these colors, both White and Green, we come to one idea, and that is a reaction to that which is overtly wicked or unnatural: a perversion of that which is understood to be right or good. In this way, White's spar in the context of Black would be that which is purely vile and wicked, the antithesis of good. On the other side of it, Green shares White's perception of how things should be, how they are. Here is that which takes the perfection of nature and morphs it into something that spits in the face of this design. Imagine, if you will, beings from a hellish realm who prey on humanity, not for some grander purpose or some end design, but rather the simple pleasure that producing fear and bringing forth pain would elicit. Their figures twisted mockeries of the human form, their voices the projection of a nightmarish human tongue. If you're unlucky enough to be dragged down to the realm, then death will be the only outcome you can hope for, as the torture will be dragged out, your body on display, all light, all hope drained from you until you're not more than a husk of your former self. In many ways, it is horror in its purest form, something beyond even the most elaborate human suffering, and for what? Nothing more than the sounds of your screams, the taste of your blood. This goes beyond demons and devils; it is something far more vile, that which can only be dreamed up in a realm beyond hell and set against the world.

The horror of Red, like most expressions of the color, is far more straight to the point than anything we've discussed so far. It is a striking of fear which is visceral and correct, nothing born of wild imagination or abstract ideas, but rather something very real. In this way, the horror of Red is reminiscent of the slasher: a being of extreme violence who deals in death just because of the dark impulses that drive them. To understand why the slasher would be the core representation of horror in Red, we must then look to the enemies of this color to uncover their fears. Both White and Blue are colors reliant on the structures they've put in place which situate them above the other colors, at least from their perspective. They would then fear the sort of horror that is the antithesis to their way of life. The slasher, in many ways, is the great equalizer. It doesn't matter how morally good you believe yourself to be, how vastly intelligent you are, or how many constructs of safety you have placed within your society; the slasher kills indiscriminately from any of these factors. What's more is that they're just a person, any person, one who has broken humanity's contract of civility. There is no understanding or restrictions that can be placed to prevent their actions from taking shape. Of course, the greatest examples of this horror comes from the many slashers of the '70s and '80s, both in media and of those born in the time. Often times, these people are given far too much credit for being clever killers when in reality, they were simply people who had impulses they could not control, ones that grew more macabre and vicious as time progressed. This fear of White and Blue is one that we may share as well, as we assume the society we have built up around ourselves will keep us safe, but nothing can save you when the killer can be your neighbor. It's easy to dismiss monsters and ghosts, but the fear of the other is all too real. The horror of Red, in this way, is one that taps into the visceral and violent side of humanity, not one born of metaphysical imagination.

Now we come to the horror of Green, a curious case indeed, and that is that Green is the one color who doesn't go out of its way to conjure fear in others, but rather instills fear due to its very existence and how that applies to what it comes into contact with. It is also the kind of horror that is very natural, even if its existence goes against what we would deem as natural, simply due to our lack of greater perspective. This is best represented by an entity that has always been a part of our fabric of space, but perhaps is hidden or unreachable, one who exists within and outside of our perception of reality. It is ancient and unfeeling, grand and yet rarely seen. It can take many forms, such as the soul of an ancient wood, a being who resides on the dark side of the moon, or a god as old as time, whom when laid sight upon, brings nothing but madness. Now, this horror isn't born simply from the themes of Green, but like with everything we've discussed so far, has to do with bringing forth fear in its enemies, both Black and Blue. You see, such entities are beyond both understanding and control. They're not like demons who can be subdued or riddles that can be solved; they're ancient ones outside of understanding, and those whose influence is all-encompassing, yet unreachable. They do not perceive or interact with us in any way that these colors can turn to their own advantage, and that is saying a lot, because when combined, Blue and Black find very little outside of their limits. And in that way, they fear these entities: ones that play by rules outside of our own. The simplest parallels cannot be ignored, and so I will draw a line to one of the Old Masters of Horror, H.P. Lovecraft, and his menagerie of Old Gods. In many of his stories, men who are intelligent and have a strong grasp on reality are brought to their knees from that which is beyond understanding. It is true fear that cannot be bargained with or reasoned away. It speaks in languages forgotten, moves in manners not understood, and its intentions are beyond reason. It is an entity that was present when the first flame was lit and lurked in the shadows that it cast. Horror goes far beyond fear; it is the unflinching and visceral emotion that cripples our very perception of the world around us. Each person has their own horrors that act as a grip on their mind and heart, but what each of us fears is different. Much of it is based on the person we are or experiences that shaped us. To truly dig deep into ourselves and find what we fear is an exercise in understanding ourselves. In that way, we can look to our colors and pull forth the horrors that hide in our own shadows. So, tell me, friend, what do you fear?

There have been a string of seemingly random and cruel murders that have been carried out across the region with no real sign as to the cause. You have been tasked with finding what has been happening. The trail of death leads you to a small village. Nothing seems to be out of place, that is, except for a large gathering at the town center. A man in white robes is speaking to a group of onlookers with other people in similar ashen-colored robes at his back. He preaches of purity in a dark time, his voice filled with conviction. You've seen a lot of things in your travels, and this sort of sight isn't out of the ordinary, though the leader does strike you as being above the common doomsayers and mad Puritans you've come across before. There is something gripping about his words. What frightens you most is how much people are receiving his message with focus and intent. It's as if he has pulled them in with a spell, but you detect nothing. You do notice an emblem on the hoods of those gathered around the speaker: a candle with a flickering flame. In the coming adventure, you learn that this man's name is Cavitus, and his group of followers are the Order of the Pure Flame. They are a cult who believe that the world has descended into darkness and preach words of purity at all costs, and wherever they go, there is guaranteed to be a death and a new follower. None of the violence can be traced back to him directly, and yet it follows him like a shadow. It turns out his words are so strong that his message seems to stick with a member of every village they pass by. That individual is then stricken with the desire to seek out the person in their village whom they deem to be part of the problem: a woman who...

Speaks out is deemed a witch and put to flame. A banker who is portrayed as is greedy is stuck with a dagger. Or a crook is executed in a cruel manner. The only way to understand more is to make your way into the cult.

The problem is that the words of Cavius are so captivating that you have trouble distinguishing them from the truth when you are around him. It is genuine that his words are a spell and even though you don't agree with his message you find yourself drawn to him. What will happen next is up to you.

This villain we have created here is one who leans into the side of white that has a sort of moral superiority. They believe anything outside of purity is a sin to be punished even though they themselves incite violence wherever they go. Cavitus knows exactly what he is doing but can rationalize his actions by stating that the world is a better place wherever his feet tread. The cleansing flame is but a candlelight now but will engulf the world and through the ashes the pure of heart will cultivate that world anew.

There are beings out there who hide behind the facade of humanity, using the faces of those you know as a mask to hide who they are. Our blue villain is one such fiend, a shape shifter. This nameless one has lived many lives, none of which were their own. Some say this entity has been present on this world since its creation, as if it's a part of some grander ethereal force. There are tales of the shifter spanning time and language, from ancient Elven toes, Dwarven tales to human scrawlings. It goes by many names: The Faceless One, Skin Walker, or Baldr, the latter being the oldest name and perhaps its true one.

Nonetheless, it is a being who is spoken of in tales but rarely seen. It is a being who is driven by a curiosity of mortals, as if it itself is a blank slate who wishes to fill that void with the lives of those unfortunate enough to cross its path and spark intrigue in them. This nameless one consumes the body, mind, and soul of its victim, in turn becoming them in nearly every way. That is until it is either bored or found out and slain. Unfortunately, its form is an immortal one, or at least it is said to be so. And so it moves on, finds another victim, and the cycle continues.

While traveling through a large coastal city, you and your party feel as if you're being followed, yet there's no particular person doing so. But from time to time, you see an inquisitive eye trace your movements through the city. It's not too unusual to feel like you're being watched; adventurers tend to stand out, but this is different. It all comes to a head one morning as you and your party rise to start your day when you notice something is off with one of your traveling companions. It's not quite obvious and nothing they say is out of the ordinary, but something isn't quite right. The rest of the party decides it's best to move on, and so you do. What you don't realize is that now, with you, travels the Faceless One, Baldr. It seems that your party has sparked its interest, and the guide you came to the coastal city with is present no more, its facade and soul consumed by the ancient one.

This villain in blue is based off two aspects: one is a curiosity to learn, and the other is an indifference to the impact its actions can have on another. While its goals are its focus, it spends its eternal life looking to fill some sort of void in itself by consuming mortal ones, as if by turning the next corner it will learn its own purpose. In some ways, it could be seen as a lost and hopeless being, but its actions have dire consequences.

Whispers around town are full of talk about the Baron. Something has come over him as of late; his gaze is distant, his actions cruel, and his breath the constant scent of spirits. It's not like he wasn't always a strange man with a bit of a harsh edge to him, but it's as if something in him finally cracked. And yet, he is more successful than he's ever been. You see, he wasn't always the Baron of these lands. He was a man of some well, sure, with a family line which held sway in these lands for a long time, but they were never truly the ones in charge, just aristocrats of the region.

Everything changed though, when the previous Baron, a kind man, went mad himself and in turn appointed Varikos as the Baron and fled the land. Ever since then, there has been a darkness over the town and a wailing coming from the Baron's homestead at night. The villagers beg you and your party to do something about it, to investigate.

What you come to learn is that Var, a man of greed and excess, wanted more for himself beyond what his family line had afforded him. Not one to work for what he wanted, and a bit of a brat at a young age, Varikos used the aid of a witch to call upon his ancestors from beyond death and in turn bind them to an amulet. He then used the magic of this amulet to manipulate them into facilitating his greed, and in this way, he drove out the previous Baron. Through this artifact, he is able to command their spirits to act on his behalf.

The issue is that this control is not perfect. Having been torn from the underworld, the ghosts of his ancestors are angry at their return and subsequent servitude. So while they heed his command, they still lash out at him whenever they can, making it hard for him to sleep or think, driving him further into drink and cruel madness. He often lashes out on those around him, having innocent people locked up and even at times executed for the most minor of infractions. The town's folk beg you to do something about this, and you know you can't pass on to the next town without helping in some way.

Being a blackline villain, Var is driven by his greed and desire for power, all without the desire for the actual work it requires. This drives him into taking a shortcut, which has dire consequences. This is why he's all too willing to desecrate his ancestors' graves for a little taste of power with no moral hindrance.

When faced with his own greed, long ago lived a general whose vicious campaigns were so brutal that the span of her lifetime is often referred to as the Blood Age. This general went by many names: the Crimson Commander, Mistress of Massacre, or simply the Butcher, among many others. It was said that her campaigns were less focused on taking strategic points and more a result of her desire to stain the lands red with blood. As she pressed further and further out from her homeland, she would kill many and recruit the rest. Most of her army were made up of those conscripts, but the core of those in her service were diehard loyalists who saw her less as their leader and more as their god.

Of course, no campaign can last forever, and she was finally defeated by a larger accumulated force. The moon was full, and the fight was brutal, so much so that it's said that even the sky turned red that night. If it has been 100 years since that fateful evening, and something has begun to stir. The Butcher has returned, signified by the Blood Moon. Tales of ghastly marauders led by a fierce warrior cloaked in red mist are beginning to spread across the region. The attacks seemingly random, the results are absolute carnage. Those who were alive during the Blood Age are racked with the same fear they had in those days.

Something must be done, but why and how has she returned? Could the underworld not hold her? Rage and bloodthirst have a god of war unleashed her upon us to test our mettle? No one knows. The only thing they do know is that when the moon turns red, the Crimson Commander is on her way, and death follows suit. This is where you come in.

For our red villain, I decided to apply red's potential for blood lust and carnage: a villain who is driven by the simple pleasures of war and its brutal outcomes. The motivations of the Mistress of Massacre are just that: massacre. She is followed by some loyalists who returned with her to the land of the living, as if tied to her cause, bound to her through rage, pressed against the bounds of an ever encroaching civilization.

Lies an ancient wood, one that has sat undisturbed for longer than humanity had been in the region. Of course, humans don't heed old folk tales for long, and they do little to stay the hand of progress, so it wasn't long before a small settlement popped up at its border. Anyone who truly listens to the words of old tales would know this was a bad idea, but all those settlers only saw the endless resources within, which in turn blinded them to its dangers.

The horror began one warm and windy night. As the parents slept, the children rose from their beds and walked barefoot out into the forest. Not a word passing their lips. In fact, there was no sound other than the wind in the air and the low, deep moaning coming from the woods. A search party would be sent in to look for the children once the village noticed they were gone that morning. But the sun barely up, they made their way inside. They had been on the outskirts of the forest before, chopping down trees and doing some hunting, but never had they stepped so deep inside. At first, they heard the moaning, then they saw the faces. The search party dropped to their knees in awe as they looked upon the expression of their children, frozen in twisted shapes, their bodies like trees planted to the ground, their limbs like branches. Then the moaning sound ceased in an instant. The silence followed by large, creaking footsteps, and from the brush rose an entity of ancient horror: a being of bramble and bushes with eyes that glowed red. It would soon be over for the search party as well. A small handful would manage to flee, but the rest were doomed.

It would not be long after this event that your party would come across the village and what is left of the villagers who stayed. For the green villain, I wanted something of an ancient horror, almost in the style of a cosmic horror villain. In some ways, it is the protector of the forest, and in other ways, the dark heart of it. There are many motivations we could pull from for green to create a villain, but for this one, I wanted something more thematic rather than philosophical.

As you can see, the color pie is a useful tool when designing characters, worlds, and in this case, villains. Ones that you can use not just for magic, but for your own Dungeons and Dragons campaigns, stories, and more. What makes the creative process even more interesting, and I would say fun, is the system I use to come up with these villains. You see, what I did is look through my Magic cards until I found the first ones that struck me in each color. I tried not to look for a specific card; what I wanted was a bit of a challenge. Then, when I had my five, one for each color, I built a villain around them in some way, not necessarily making them into villains, but rather gaining inspiration from them. The cards which inspired this video were Aaru Solemn Ritualist for white, Undercover Operative for blue, Malevolent Noble for black, Blood Age General for red, and Yidhra, Grave Gardner for green. As you can see, some of them are very close in inspiration, while others tend to drift a bit. If you use this system to make a villain or even a hero, then don't worry if your ideas drift; that just means you had a spark of creativity. Creativity is an amazing thing we all have inside of us, but sometimes we need the right tools for the job, and in that way, I believe the color pie is just that tool.

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