Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 soapninja Sep 18, 2009 23:52:42	I have been thinking of using an alignment system that is based off of players ongoing choices much like Oblivion or some of the Bioware games.  For those not familiar with the system I'm speaking of, it basically boils down to this:   Each character has an Alignment/Reputation that is neutral/undeveloped to begin with. Based on character choices throughout the campaign, they gain a reputation for either being good or evil that affects the way they are perceived in the world.  As they gain levels and gain in power, their reputation continues to develop also.  This can affect NPC interraction on many levels, inluding which types of quests will be available, the types of people willing to trade with them, cities and guilds that may or may not welcome them.  In extreme cases, having a negative reputation can even involve characters having bounties placed on them.   It seems like a very fluid way of developing a character, instead of thinking "my character is Lawful Good so I need to always abide by that", it allows characters and personalities to be developed through time leading the campaign in interesting paths.  It also can provide motivation to attempt to reverse consequences made from previous choices in an attempt to gain repututation back that may have been lost in an undesired direction.   I'm wondering if anyone has had experience incorporating such a system into a D&D campaign, and if you would mind posting your comments and experiences with it here?  Thanks.
#2 mb_webguy Sep 20, 2009 22:24:24	This doesn't seem so much like alignment as reputation.  Alignment is an abstraction of the character's personality, which should be already somewhat established at the beginning of the game.  After all, a person is not a completely blank slate until the age of 18 (or whatever age the character begins his adventuring career) and then suddenly develops a personality.  So if an alignment system exists, the character should certainly have an initial alignment based on the character's established personality and beliefs.  OTOH, alignment doesn't seem to have any real purpose in 4e other than shorthand for the character's general outlook and behavior, and the game would function just fine without it.  I've played many other RPGs that had no concept of alignment, and either left the character's personality off the character sheet entirely or else used some other abstraction of personality like the oWoD's nature and demeanor. As far as reputation -- how well-known the character is and how his actions are viewed by society -- IMO a system is completely unnecessary.  This sort of thing realistically should be done on a case-by-case basis.  I'm a bit more saavy than many of my friends when it comes to pre-1990s pop culture.  If I make a witty reference to Colonel Klink, I can be pretty sure that I'll get a bunch of blank stares.  On the other hand, I don't really pay much attention to current events, and I'm often just as clueless when someone mentions certain celebrities, political, or web personalities.  One of my friends made a comment about Boxxy a while back, and I thought they were talking about the kid on the old Battlestar Galactica...  So from my perspective, Colonel Klink would have a higher reputation score than Boxxybabee, but he opposite would be true for my friends. Anyway, reputation is a subjective thing that can't really be captured by any simple mechanic.  The DM knows what the PCs have done and is the best judge of the effect and scope of those actions in the campaign world as well as a specific NPC's knowledge of them.  Trying to add some kind of point system to track it is counterproductive as it places more demands on the DMs attention and detracts from the versimilitude of the campaign.
#3 mellored Sep 21, 2009 14:06:16	I think reputation might be over simplifying.  You could be well known in a town, but never heard of in another. Seems like you just want to extend the 2 axis alignment of 3.5 by adding more shades of gray.  So you still have a good/bad, order/chaos but with a rating of 0 to 100 (rather then 1-3).  I'm a fan of such, expcecially if you plan on modifying it during play ("you ignore the cry of the begger, -1 alignment, ect").