I used to get really intimidated by social people. It was because I was scared they wouldn't like me. I valued their opinion higher than others because they seemed cool, so I felt like them not liking me would be a blow to my ego. If someone I'm not impressed by doesn't like me, then I wouldn't really care because I don't value their opinion. With impressive people, I would get nervous I was gonna say the wrong thing, or look stupid or if they were a girl, that they wouldn't think I was attractive, which would've hurt more than if a girl I wasn't attracted to didn't think I was attractive. I dunno if that makes sense.

I also know what you mean about being scared of them striking. Some people know how to decimate others and they know how to set up a situation so they can do it publicly and truly destroy you. The instincts some people have for this are shocking. They're like Jordan with a basketball in his hands. They're in complete control and they know exactly what to do to win the game (and they do consider it a game even when the other person doesn't). That can be intimidating.

I think it can actually be a good thing to be completely decimated by a person like that. Once you've been through the worst of it and came out the other side, you won't be scared of them anymore. All they can do is humiliate you and turn others against you. The fear of that humiliation can be paralyzing and stop people from standing up to them. Even if they see them ganging up on someone else. Knowing that their wrath will be turned on you if you defend them is understandably scary enough to prevent someone from interceding.

I went through that and got completely humiliated by a group of people led by an NPD girl. I had a psychotic breakdown and I'm now technically a schizophrenic (but the delusions are on and off). It's hard to find a silver lining in that, but one of the good things that came out of it is that I'm not afraid of humiliation. I've been humiliated beyond belief and that will follow me forever anyway so what do I have to lose?

I dunno if that makes sense. Analogies work better. Imagine if someone was scared of spiders (non poisonous ones). Then one day a bunch of people throw them into a bathtub to fill with spiders as a joke. All of the spiders bite them and they come out of it fine and eventually recover.

That person is not going to be scared next time he comes across a spider. He could probably come across a room filled with them and he wouldn't get scared at all.

I also started to realize that they feed off of your intimidation. If you're not at all scared, then they will lose their nerve. They need to have the upper hand and to feel your intimidation or they get nervous and show a completely different side to themselves. It's almost like seeing a completely different person actually. They will get nervous and stumble over their words and they will make themselves look like a complete ass trying to re-establish that intimidation factor.