Supervillain

"Call us bad guys, call us villains, call us whatever you like -- though I prefer "anti-heroes" myself. We may not be the ones you want marrying your daughter, but we have this to say for ourselves -- when everything goes to Hell -- we're the ones -- maybe the only ones -- that are certain to survive. Why, you ask? Because unlike the "good" guys, we're willing to do whatever it takes to survive."

- Captain Cold

Supervillains are individuals gifted with either great skills or superhuman abilities that use them to satisfy their own amoral ambitions. In most cases, the motive of a supervillain is personal gain, whether it be for wealth, power or material goods. In other cases, a supervillain may act to satisfy a sociological or psychological need. Supervillains act outside of the accepted laws of society and infrequently concern themselves with the well-being of others. By and large, they're just dicks.

There are several factors that separate a supervillain from your run-of-the-mill antagonist; not the least of which includes a colorful costume which projects a sense of formidability as well as allows them to maintain some measure of a secret identity. Supervillains do not regularly concern themselves with secret identities however, as most of them have criminal records and their real names are a matter of public record. Many supervillains possess fantastic powers that set them apart from the average ne'er-do-well. There a wide range of such abilities including superhuman strength, durability and reflexes, the ability to project beams of energy, flight, mental powers, mysticism, etc.

The antithesis to a supervillain is of course a superhero. Superheroes demonstrate similar skills and ambitions, but always operate for the benefit of humanity.