Post/Author/DateTime	Post
StormKnight 10-16-03, 04:00 PM	Personally, I find alignment to be one of the oddest ideas to come out of D&D. At least they've gotten rid of alignment languages since 1st ed (Um, they are gone, aren't they?) but it still leads to so much oddness. How lawful do you have to be to be lawful good? What if you are basically good with a few bad habits? Or basically bad with a few good habits? How does a little circle make complex moral judgements that have baffled philosophers for centuries? How do chaotic things ever get organized at all if they are so...well...chaotic? Yet, the alignment idea is so deeply entrenched in the game that getting rid of it causes a slew of problems. So I thunk and thunk (for at least a whole 10 seconds) and came up with some ideas about the whys and hows of alignment for my campaign. The typical D&D world is one filled with magic, fantastic beings, and dieties...from whom the magic of the world flows. These gods and goddesses and godthingamajigs constantly influence the world, often in subtle ways, sometimes in overt ones, but when you look at the total of them all everything in the world is connected to them in one way or another. These dieties draw their power from quintessential sources of primal power; power that mortals have given names and described as good and evil, law and chaos, and even the unity of neutrality. Dieties of like personalities draw on like sources (or perhaps it is this primal power that gives those who draw on it the same traits; that is for the philosophers to argue). And as every other magic and life force in the world draws from these same powers, all things are imbued with the energy from these dieties. Whether good or evil, it flows through the person, and those who knows the ways of magic can sense it. So is a person linked to good, good? Most likely yes. The dieties choose those who emulate their own ideals. The link reinforces a persons character as well, for those who are true to their link of alignment receive the favor and karmic aid of its power, while those who defy it suffer for it. In subtle ways, the power influences those it touches; those aligned with good learn to trust and benefit from it, while those of evil learn that to trust brings ruin and to deceive brings power. Whether we talk about conscience, or id, in this fantasy world both are the whisperings of that quintessential power. Rare it is for a person to go against the ways of their power. Most people do not have the will...they must bend to what they cannot understand or control. For the few strong enough, other sources of power usually recognizes their strength and take that person as their own, replacing their old ties with an alignment more suited to them. But ever so often a person will struggle against their alignment, but be unable to leave it. Whether through some sense of divine humor or from forseeing some great destiny that they wish to influence, the diety keeps their grip on the person, and they must struggle with the constant whispers of what they try to ignore and the misfortune that comes from refusing their ties. Oridnary people go through their lives unaware of these powers at work in themselves. Even wizards and priests only begin to understand the forces that work themselves through every part of life. This is a far off and "invisible" concept; it changes little in the game, save to give players the freedom to have variety within their alignment, to explain the mystical effects of alignment, and to help deal with why a person who is evil or good in so many ways can be the reverse in others. The essential forces and magics are black and white; the people need not be. A character that resists their alignment will find misfortune (and possible game penalties), but eventually they may break from the alignment into one that fits them better, or be turned onto the "correct" path by the power that guides them.
MinusInnocence 10-16-03, 05:21 PM	Absolutely. Extraplanar beings (including the deities you describe so well) are those alignments, made flesh; and, indeed, the very term implies that the being being described is somehow in league with an agency or organization. Demons are Chaos and Evil, incarnate. They are brutal, cruel, selfish and depraved, and will stop at nothing to tempt others to ride along with them in the same boat; if for no other reason than to gain some twised sense of pleasure and vindication at the other's Fall. Archons, devas, and the like, however... are Good (yes, so I don't know which ones are neutral and which ones are lawful, sue me); they are gentle, compassionate, and generally concerned with the wellness and purity of those beyond their own circle of influence. However, they can be stern and resolute; the eternal war being waged between the Planes is a vicious and horrific one, and Evil can claim you if you slip in your vigilance for even a moment. Well, that is all very well and good. It's reasonable enough, and not too difficult for anyone with an imagination to wrap their head around... the world in which a traditional D&D campaign takes place is not one of indiscriminate greys, or subjective morality. There is a true, palpable presence in the world. It is morality, and it is inescapable. But where does all of this leave mortals? Certainly, most (even the highly educated) go their whole lives without ever really coming into contact with REAL Evil, or TRUE Good. It is no coincidence that humans, and many other sentient beings, are often Neutral. They are caught somewhere in the balance, and although they may be tugged one way or the other at times, only the spiritually aware (or the intellectually motivated) really have any reason to concern themselves with the Powers of the Planes. Generally, the most difficult roadblock to circumvent for the average gaming group is really defining these terms. Socrates believed that unless we can have a mutual agreement on what various things embody or symbolize, it is fruitless to hold a debate on them; or even try to understand them. The problem here, of course, arises when the group tries to go 'by the book' with Alignment. It simply isn't possible: WotC left a lot to be read, 'between the lines', intentionally. You have to decide for yourself (or, hopefully, with your group's assistance!) what the terms 'Good', 'Evil', and the like really mean. After a short time, if you are studious in this endeavor, the shackles that a lot of people assume Alignment places on their ingenuity and creativity suddenly fall away; your game can be enriched and strengthened by it. Here are a few rules of thumb (a lot of this can be found in the Alignment section of the FAQ at the top of this page... it's really the only part of the project that I took it upon myself to pursue). A) Alignment is only a series of guidelines, not hard and fast rules. While a lot of the game revolves around it (because D&D, after all, is an RPG; and debates on what is 'right' or 'wrong' have a whole lot to do with figuring out how your character feels, and what kind of person he/she is), you should never let it get in the way of the fun of the game. Don't think in terms of, "My character is Lawful Good, so obviously it would be out of the question to do X. What are my other options?" Instead, whenever you get bogged down in an RP dilemma and can't decide what your character would do (or, rather, what YOU would do if you were your character), then and only then should you look to your Alignment. Those simple words are only there to help you, not cripple your enjoyment of the game by telling you what you can and can't do. B) In the real world, we often have a difficult time determining what the proper course of action is. We use terms like 'good' or 'bad' to describe the way people behave; this is NOT the same as Good and Evil. I, myself, ascribe to a school of ethics called Egoism. I place myself before everyone else (within reason; I am not a hedonist nor do I endorse nihilistic, devil-may-care destruction. That does not further my interests), and do what I can to get ahead. Sometimes, I have to step on others to achieve my goals, but I avoid doing so when I can... not only do I see the value in helping others and not hurting them (extending your circle of friends is almost never a bad idea), but ruining someone's life for no reason at all doesn't accomplish anything. Unfortunately, although to many this philosophy may sound perfectly rational and even natural to most people, by D&D guidelines, I am Neutral Evil. It doesn't matter which test I take; I always end up as Neutral Evil. I've done several, trust me... geez, you know, I also took a test to see where Dante would place me according to the precepts set forth in Inferno. I ended up on the 9th layer of Hell. So, instead of thinking in terms of, "What do a lot of people approve of in the real world, and how can I convert it into the Alignment system of D&D (with the goal of being labeled as 'Good')?" ... you should probably say, "How can I boil down basic moral principles that all societies uphold (and the antithesis of each) to choose from for my character; and, what does each mean?" C) Being Lawful in aligment does NOT mean you obey every law. It means you prefer order over utter chaos; you feel more comfortable with clearly visible and understandable guidelines in a society, than in a place where the authority figures are all arbitrary (which results in no authority at all, one step away from Anarchy). Now, most people who are Lawful DO follow several laws... but not because that's what their alignment says they have to do. It's actually completely backwards... laws and rules are created with Lawful people in mind, sometimes BY Lawful people, themselves. Nor does Chaos mean you run around, naked, with your hair on fire at every opportunity. You just value the freedom and 'rights' of every individual, sentient being more than the solace and perceived security that a system of government. You may even be a little paranoid about Authoritarianism and the State developing so much political clout; that basic liberties people in a lot of Good societies take for granted, will be removed. On the other hand, you're not going to firebomb the King's palace for 'trying to keep a good man down with his jive.' This is not the behavior of a reasonable person; only unjust, completely arbitrary and unrealistic laws need to be broken. A Chaotic individual generally prefers to be left alone to 'do his own thing', but only a madman could deny the benefits of an organized and peaceful culture (and so it is not entirely bizarre for Chaotic creatures to band together). Again, I hope this wasn't too unclear and that I could help. You definitely need to take a look at the FAQ, though, there's a lot of great info there for this hotly-contested debate (does anyone else find that the only time Alignment really causes problems is when people with conflicting ideas come together and argue about it?)