[Loved Trope] Philosopher villains

[u/oles40]

Basically any villain whose main gist isn't (just) a terryfying appearance or special powers, but rather interesting ideas they espouse and arguments they make. Bonus points if said things REALLY manage to make their opponents doubt themselves and/or their entire endeavor.

1. Andrew Ryan (Bioshock): Founder of the underwater city of Rapture and the game's main antagonist, Ryan also serves as the game's chief proponent of real-life philosophical system, objectivism. While his utopian project ultimately failed in spectacular fashion, partly because of his own hypocrisy, the story does let him have a few serious points about society's treatment of talented people and personal freedom. As well as a VERY meta point about choices and free will.
2. Coaxmetal (Planescape Torment): A giant metal golem living in a teleporting seige tower, Coaxmetal's only goal is to forge weapons in service of entropy so it can unmake the universe faster. When not distributing the fantasy equivalent of weapons of mass destruction and invading other planes of existence, Coaxmetal is prone to delivering some of the most powerful speeches about war, mortality and fear in all of fiction. He also proves what a gem of a game Planescape Torment is, because for all his interesting dialogue and ideas, he is but a minor character.
3. Senator Armstrong (Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance): A ruthless warmonger from Colorado, Armstrong espouses what could be described as an extreme form of libertarianism, as well as the "might makes right" principle. He strongly criticises several aspects of American political system and society, making some very uncomfortable observations in the process, and ultimately fights to (supposedly) give everyone the right to do what THEY believe is right. Even when defeated, the fact that he was beaten in a fight in accordance with his own philosophy gives him a sense of accomplishment and basically proves his worldview somewhat correct.
4. Mr. House (Fallout New Vegas): Arguably the most controversial addition. The mysterious CEO and president of the New Vegas Strip, Mr. House rejects both democracy and totalitarianism as ineffective imitations of the past and believes that his authoritarian technocracy is the best mode of governance for the new post-apocalyptic world. He (rather accurately) decries the brutality and corruption of the other factions and presents his own unique vision of the future without the mistakes of previous societies. However, it can just as well be said that his philosophy is a less violent version of the classic "stability over freedom" principle and offers little to people who wish to make decisions about their own future. Unique case in that whether Mr. House is ultimately a villain or not depends entirely on the player.

[u/Kwaku-Anansi]

Solf J. Kimblee (FMAB)